I have 2 quilts that are very old but it great condition. They do have some smoke discoloration. What should I use to wash them or should I have them cleaned? They were probably made in the 20's by my great & great great grandmothers.

I used Oxy clean and a gentle cycle in my washer. Do a search here, this has been a very popular subject in the not too distant past.

i would wash on gentle and machine dry to damp and then hang or drape to finish drying

I wouldn't dry clean them. The chemicals might do more damage than a gentle wash.

If you are afraid to wash them in your washing machine, I would soak them in the bathtub and dry on the line. there are some things that you can buy to soak in that will remove discoloration. I can only remember the name of one--Grandma's secret spot remover is one, but not good for soaking only spot treatments. The other I bought at my LQS and soaked old handmade lace that my Grandmother made that was very grey--It whitened the lace right up--I was amazed. OxyClean is wonderful to remove stains.
Sue

I would roll them up in towels to remove most of the water before hanging them on the line. And if you do hang them on the line, don't hang them from just one edge. EEK!! The weight could damage some of the fibers.

I have wash old quilts that I found in my barn in washing machine on gentle---I used Woolite--see if all stains came out before drying in dryer because this will set the stain---Don't hand up to dry--too much weight---lay flat if you can in the sun or somewhere flat---lots of info on here in search

If you choose to use the soak in the tub method, it is best to use a plastic laundy basket to lift it out as, the weight from the water could cause damage in lifting.

soak them in Oxyclean. soak. no agitation. spin out and fill and soak again. lay flat to dry if possible and you may put in the dryer for 5 to 10 minutes at the end of the drying to help get wrinkles out. good luck.

Thank you all so much for your replies. I'm new to the board and am amazed at the wealth of information I am learning from it along with the beautiful quilts I'm seeing. I'm new to quilting too so I'm only doing easy things and getting so many wonderful ideas. Blessings, Judyth