ha, ha. i got it on and it looks soooo much better. must have been starch stain but it's gone. i let it hang out in the hot sunshine a bit and put in on the ironing board when a tad damp. this time i got it on more securely. used large safety pins on the sides and pinned to the thin mat cover. Before, i'd had used binding clips and tied those to each other with twine. ironing yardage tended to make the sides get caught when moving that much fabric. so now, they should stay put!! thanks all.