Scorched fabric
 

this was a very frustrating project for me. Thank you Otis for pointing out my mistake... but now I have scorched the center white area... any suggestions. it just never ends. thanks

You are having a time with this! A quick search suggests:

->If the scorch mark is fresh, soak it immediately in cold water for at least 24 hours. Often, this will remove the marks. If not, continue with the next step.


->Wet the scorch mark with hydrogen peroxide. Remember to spot test first. Peroxide may fade some fabrics and/or colors. Wet the clean white cloth with peroxide, then place it over the scorched fabric. Iron lightly.
Repeat, keeping the cloth moist with peroxide, until the stain is gone or until you no longer see improvement.


->As an alternative, rinse with white vinegar then water and repeat until the stain is gone (or you no longer see improvement).

->One more trick is to cover the burn mark with lemon juice and lay it out in the sun. This causes a natural bleaching effect, but it may fade fabrics, so spot test first.

Good luck!

Was the block starched? I have found that often I have scorched the starch, not the fabric. In this case the scorch will wash out later, when the quilt is washed. I have also had it happen that starch got on the iron and scorched, and then was transferred to the fabric. Again, in this case it will wash out with the starch.

If the fabric is scorched -- meaning, the fabric is actually burned brown -- I'm not sure that anything will bring back the original color.

thank you ladies... sooo much... usually I google everything, but so frustrated with this.... and tired... I will soak overnight and hopefully it is the start... cuz I did starch the heck out of it... thanks again... I will let you know my results. You are the best.

LindaM and Prism99 thank you so much... I would never have thought about scorching the starch... I am learning about starching.... I really like the texture it gives fabrics... but need to figure out how much to do and NOT to scorch it... pressing on wrong side , I guess... Thank you again. I soaked my project overnight and all but a little on the seams came out. I used peroxide on those and will try the lemon juice and sunshine later. I feel so much better this morning.. Someone suggested tea staining too, or I will quilt heavily in center and I think I can cover up what is left. I have said it before, but I need to say it again... you ladies are amazing... always the best info and support here. THANKS

If the fabric itself was scorched then some of the fibers have been damaged. If you manage to remove the darkened fibers, that means the remaining fabric is a little thinner and weakened. It surely will shorten the life of the quilt block. Your block is lovely, and I hope it was only the starch that burned.

Soaking might not be enough to get all the starch out. The seams might require some gentle rubbing with a soapy finger.

If you do decide to overdye, it's best not to use tea. Tea contains tannic acid, which shortens the life of the fibers. Any type of light tan fabric dye would be better. Or, I would look for some white fabric paint to touch up small areas.

I am most likely to scorch starch by using spray starch and not giving it enough time to dry before hitting it with a hot iron. It does help to spray one side, turn the block over, and iron the opposite side. It's best, however, to wait long enough for the fibers to absorb the starch completely before ironing.

Many years ago my grandmother told me to sprinkle some salt on the stain and rub it in with a piece of cut lemon. Took some elbow grease, but it worked!