Self made Best Press not working
 

Hello:
We found potato vodka. Mixed 8 to 1...... no difference in fabric body, mixed 4 to 1...... no difference in fabric body. Have not tried it undiluted. Has anyone used the grain vodka? What is wrong???

And is there a reason sizing is not good? Can it be made in batches rather than using spray can?

I use Best Press, Magic Sizing, Faultless Spray Starch, what ever I think I need at the moment. For me it is too much of a pain to try & make something when there are just as good if not better cheaper products on the market.

I myself am leery about mixing alcohol and heat. I purchased the Best Press and just diluted it with distilled water, a little at a time. I did 4-1. 4 being water, 1 being BP. put in spray bottle works just fine. Try your own formula. You may want to go 50-50. 4 ozs. water to 1oz. BP. Your call.

Hmmm. If you read the other thread currently active on the board about homemade Best Press, the info presented there states that the starch from the vodka does not stay in the liquid, it turns into alcohol. The yeast eats the starch and the by-product is alcohol. Also, if you're using the recipe posted in that thread, it's incorrect. It's missing starch. You can use a product like Sta-Flo, or cornstarch. There are several recipes on the web, here's a couple published by a couple of nationally known quilters.

http://dianegaudynski.blogspot.com/2010/02/starch.html - a corn starch recipe.

http://www.marklipinski.com/Tulip%20Tips/TTcontent.html - a liquid starch recipe. Scroll down to tip #1. He also has a "lavender linen water" recipe as tip #3, it is the same as the recipe the OP tried to use as starch.

I believe that the vodka acts as a preservative to stabilize the starch so it doesn't go bad.

I'm with the earlier poster - I've got better things to do with my time, the cost of starch is relatively low in comparison to the hassle of actually making and storing a homemade version.

Me too! If a bottle of spray or starch breaks the budget I have more to worry about then making my own.

There are two basic differences between starch and sizing. (1) Starch is made from organic products -- potatoes, rice, corn, etc. Sizing is made from chemicals. (2) Starch can be made strong enough to make the fabric very stiff, whereas sizing has limited stiffening properties. This is why sizing is often used for ironing cuffs and collars -- gives a crispness without making the fabric so stiff it is uncomfortable to wear.

Personally, for quilting, I prefer starch because it can stabilize the fabric much more than sizing can. I do not like spraying fabric as I iron -- too much work for this lazy quilter. Plus, I have the beginnings of osteoarthritis in the joints of my hands (and remediated carpal tunnel syndrome); in my opinion, repeated spraying puts unnecessary stress on my hands and wrists. I think it even could result in a repetitive stress injury. This is why I limit using spray starch to preparing the top before quilting. It is also one of the reasons I do not prewash my fabrics unless necessary; the manufacturer's sizing in the fabric eliminates the need to starch the fabric. For backings, I heavily starch the fabric before sewing into a backing. For this I use a 1:1 solution of Sta-Flo liquid laundry starch and water, "paint" the solution onto the yardage with a large inexpensive wall painting brush until the fabric is saturated, wait a couple of minutes to make sure the fibers have absorbed the starch, toss in the dryer, and iron with steam.

Edit: If I wanted to make my own spray starch solution, I would simply use Sta-Flo and dilute with considerably more water. Sta-Flo contains preservatives, so the mixture should not spoil. The only thing about spraying with this (as with all spray starches) is that after spraying you need to wait a minute or so to allow the fabric fibers to absorb the starch. This is *especially* true if you are using unwashed fabric, as then the manufacturer's sizing will slow down the ability of water to penetrate the fibers. This is one of the disadvantages of using spray starch at the ironing board, in my opinion. I don't like to wait, so typically I will try to spray starch the entire area first. Starch reactivates with water so, even if it dries, a steam iron will reactivate any dried spray starch on the fabric.

Years ago I made spray starch from cornstarch (the powdered kind you use in cooking) and water. That has no preservatives in it and therefore will not keep indefinitely. I could keep it at most two weeks if I kept the spray bottle in the refrigerator; a week if left out on the ironing board. In both cases, mold would develop because of the absence of preservative.

Edit2: I do wonder if homemade Sta-Flo spray starch might clog the nozzle of a sprayer. Maybe it doesn't if made weak enough?

Vodka is ethanol and water, which is distilled. The end product is essentially captured as it evaporates and re-condensed into liquid. The original starch may or may not be completely consumed, but it will not exist in the end product.

If you want inexpensive starch, go buy some Niagara or Magic Sizing, about $2-3 at the grocery store. They work great and are probably less expensive than Vodka (which serves no purpose other than maybe to keep the lavender oil in suspension). Also, the alcohol itself will evaporate over time, leaving water and lavender oil.

What's wrong is alcohol is not starch. The process of fermentation changes starches to alcohol.

I agree. I really like Magic Sizing but my local Walmart doesn't carry it. The super store does and also carries Niagara in a non aerosol spray bottle. So when I am at the super Walmart, I always stock up with as much as I can carry. I have the worst luck with the spray can of Niagara. Always seem to not spray evenly.

Put lemon juice {fresh or bottled} in your homemade spray starch!! It never goes bad and you do not have to refrigerate it. Recipe is here on the QB!!!

I have tried the homemade "best Press" and it didn't work for me either. Now I buy gallons from Ebay, save a lot over LQS prices for small bottles and don't run out all the time!

If you've already bought vodka and decide not to use it, of course you can make martinis or gimlets, but the best thing is that it makes excellent pie dough. Use it instead of water for the flakiest pastry! No taste difference, but wonderful.
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2...gh-recipe.html or Google pie dough vodka recipe.

Hello:
Thank you for your ideas. I did go back and read some of the other posts about this and several say this actually gives the fabric body. Not my mixture in any way. Perhaps it is necessary to add the starch but then it makes sense to just use starch. Might just try Lynn VT's suggestion and make a pie. Or clean with what is left.
Hope all of you are finally having Spring weather.

I vote for Vodka & Orange Juice.

There is no starch in alcohol
MaryKatherine

I use to use a spray put out by Dryel. not sure if I spelled that right... Any way, I loved it. It went away and came back as Bounce Spray. Really really strong fragrance . Couldn't use it any more. I must wash fabrics , the chemicals make me sick. I make my own spray with vodka. I do not expect it to work like starch.It does work better than plain water for me and if I need starch I mix that too ... Because I can get exactly the strength I need.

I buy the liquid starch from Wal-Mart and mix to strength I prefer. I do like my fabric fairly stiff.

This is the spray I having been using, and it works well for me. I believe most of you have forgotten the liquid starch.
Hope this helps. Arline.


DIY Pressing Spray ❉ 2 cups distilled water ❉ 2 oz Vodka ~ needed to make the essential oil mix in with the water. Rubbing alcohol cannot be used because it's a different type of alcohol. It's a chemistry thing. Yes, people look at me weird because I have a bottle of Vodka in my stash bin. I'm used to odd looks. If you want it to be unscented, simply leave out the essential oil and vodka. ❉ 6-12 drops of 100% pure essential oil ~ ❉ 1/3 cup of liquid starch Shake well before each use.

I use Magic sizing, and get it from WalMart for about a dollar a can. The dollar store also has both sizing and starch....works for me! :)

my receipe for best press is-1/4 cup cheap vodka - 2 cups distilled water - 8-10 drops essence oil .it doesn't make fab stiff like spray starch but like best press takes all wrinkles out. i got this off this board. works for me cheaper then best press

You can dilute Best Press 50% and it will still be as good as full strength. I buy it by the gallon on Amazon, free shipping, and mix it in a smaller sprayer.

I use starch on my fabrics and keep the vodka for drinking!!

I use 2tbsp vodka to 1 cup distilled water and then add some fabric softener. If I want it stiffer I add more Vodka. The amt of Fabric Softener is to your liking I add a couple of capfuls to a gallon but it's up to you. You can buy the scented softeners, lavender keeps moths away and smells wonderful but scents bother some people so I don't use them. More softener makes the fabric smooth and wonderful to me. Alcohol gives it crispy. Spray the fabric, let it dry a little, then iron. Maybe you iron too fast. I spray a lot of fabric, wrong side, take a break then come back and iron.

My quilting teacher recommends sizing.