I have noticed a handful of people have used mens ties in their quilting.

I have been collecting ties for a while and they're dirty especially coming from thrift stores.

Do any of you clean them before use? If so how? Can they be put in the wash on gentle cycle?

Thanks for responding.

:-) Sue

do a search or check out the book Daddy's Ties by Shirley Botsford. There is special care required in washing the ties.

I hand wash them with mild shampoo then rinse water and then roll them in a towel to wring out. Then I block them & lay them flat on a towel to dry. I take out the back middle seam before I wash them also. If you iron them make sure your iron is set for silks or use a pressing cloth so you dont scorch them. alot of ties are made from silk

Will give these a try. Thanks.

i put mine in a mesh laundry bag and toss them into the washer---then into the dryer-
i also take them apart- (remove the seam down the back) and remove the interfacing inside before doing anything with them-
when they are mixed fibers (ie: silk, poly, wool) i separate them according to fiber content before doing anything with them.

I plan to do a tie quilt from my father's ties. I put them in my washing machine with my regular detergent and washed them on gentle. After they had spun, I took the giant ball of tangled ties out to separate them for hanging. Any that didn't survive the abuse, I discarded. I hung them on the outside clothesline to dry and then brought them in to a storeage bin. I'm not quite ready to use them.