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-   -   Starching Fabric--in Sink or Washing Machine?? (https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1/starching-fabric-sink-washing-machine-t261565.html)

GrammaNan 02-22-2015 08:53 AM

I remember my grandma (in the 50's) sprinkling my grandpa's shirts after they came out of the refrigerator. She had a coke bottle filled with water. It had the strangest looking rubber cap on it. It looked like a shower head. I also remember swearing to my self that I would NEVER iron anything like that in my life and I haven't :D

Pennyhal 02-22-2015 12:25 PM

Oh gosh! When I was a kid, my mother would take a solid cube of starch and put it in a large pot and heat the water to make it melt. Then when the clothes came out of the washing machine, she dunk them in the pot and wring the out. I'd help hang them on the line outdoors, or down in the basement if it was winter. We let them dry. Then it was my job to dampen them with water and we just put them on a table. By time I got them all dampened, the first ones would be ready for me to iron. I'm not fond of starch!

Cecil 02-22-2015 12:34 PM

I used to love the smell of Satina.

carolynjo 02-22-2015 05:28 PM

My mother used to dip and wring clothes in the starch solution and then put in a plastic bag in fridge and iron the next day. Or, if she wanted to, she would spritz dry fabric or clothes with the starch solution and then put in a plastic bag until the moisture had spread through all the fabric.

lclang 02-23-2015 05:21 AM

I see no reason to starch fabric at all and I don't. I like the flexibility of the soft fabric for meeting corners, etc.

citruscountyquilter 02-23-2015 11:45 AM

Whether I use ready mix like Niagara or concentrate like Sta-Flo I still spray my material. I use a plastic dish pan. I put the fabric in the dishpan and spray one side. I flip it over and spray the other side. I then roll the fabric and place in a plastic bag for it to mellow for 10-15 minutes and the fabric fibers to absorb the starch. I then press with a dry iron. If I need the fabric stiffer then I repeat the process. The dishpan keeps the surrounding area clean and what residue that is left in the dishpan will dry and flake off. I mix concentrate 50/50 in a spray bottle.

Cass62 02-23-2015 12:18 PM


Originally Posted by citruscountyquilter (Post 7102544)
Whether I use ready mix like Niagara or concentrate like Sta-Flo I still spray my material. I use a plastic dish pan. I put the fabric in the dishpan and spray one side. I flip it over and spray the other side. I then roll the fabric and place in a plastic bag for it to mellow for 10-15 minutes and the fabric fibers to absorb the starch. I then press with a dry iron. If I need the fabric stiffer then I repeat the process. The dishpan keeps the surrounding area clean and what residue that is left in the dishpan will dry and flake off. I mix concentrate 50/50 in a spray bottle.

I am going to try this. With my current method mentioned above, I hang the fabric over the tub and with limited space, it seems that your method might be a real time saver. It would enable me to spray and bag multiple fabrics without running out of space to hang it. Even if I decide to keep dip starching, I could be bagging it up to hang later. Just hadn't occurred to me. Thanks for the tip! :)


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