Charity Quilt Tops Smell Too Bad to Quilt
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 673
Charity Quilt Tops Smell Too Bad to Quilt
Help! I have 4 tops from my QOV group to be longarmed. They smell so bad I can't work on them. Does anyone know how to get the smell out? Can they be soaked/washed gently? Or is airing them the only way?
I honestly don't know how the owner could stand to piece them. They were all made from kits the group coordinator put together out of fabric she had stored somewhere. They smell musty. Dealing with perfumey scents from soap is one thing, but these are just awful.
My longarm is new. I bought it in part to do donation work. So this is my first time doing donation quilts or a quilt other than my own. If this is going to be an ongoing problem I need to know how to safely destink tops.
Any suggestions?
SVAL
I honestly don't know how the owner could stand to piece them. They were all made from kits the group coordinator put together out of fabric she had stored somewhere. They smell musty. Dealing with perfumey scents from soap is one thing, but these are just awful.
My longarm is new. I bought it in part to do donation work. So this is my first time doing donation quilts or a quilt other than my own. If this is going to be an ongoing problem I need to know how to safely destink tops.
Any suggestions?
SVAL
#4
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,391
Are these making your allergies act up?
#5
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 673
I really want to be able to do donation quilts. I know I could make good use of my new longarm. But the thoughts of putting them on my leaders is unthinkable.
I feel if I send them back I would have to bow out of the group. They would just figure I couldn't quilt anyone's for one reason or another.
#6
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: In the beautiful hills of northwest Connecticut.
Posts: 2,580
Why can't you wash them? I know that musty fabric can be soaked & then dried outside on a clothesline, & you can't tell they were ever musty! But it's a lot of extra work for you. Maybe 4 people can each take a quilt & soak it & then return to you for quilting, since you're willing to do that for the group. Good luck in your final decision -- & please let us know how this turns out!
#7
Power Poster
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Southern USA
Posts: 15,913
I wouldn't wash the tops, you will have a distorted mess. Spray liberally with Lysol and put outside until dry. If you decide to return them, put the quilt tops in a closed up plastic bag. Let the person who opens it get a good whiff.
#8
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 673
Why can't you wash them? I know that musty fabric can be soaked & then dried outside on a clothesline, & you can't tell they were ever musty! But it's a lot of extra work for you. Maybe 4 people can each take a quilt & soak it & then return to you for quilting, since you're willing to do that for the group. Good luck in your final decision -- & please let us know how this turns out!
I'm going to wash the backing fabric in the machine first to see if the smell goes away.
#10
Super Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Morris Plains, NJ
Posts: 1,802
I would ask the coordinator how you should handle it. Maybe they will just want to tie the quilts and then wash them. We once came home from vacation to a dog with fleas (thanks to our son who took him unknowingly to a friend's home who had cats with fleas ). I was a fanatic washing everything in site. I had a quilt top, made with Moda fabric, and I washed it in with hot water on delicate and dried on low. It came out great with some unraveling but no seams pulled apart. Was easily able to iron it. But thinking about it, I had pre washed the fabrics on hot with Retayne so the shrinkage had already occurred. Good luck. I couldn't stand the smell of mold/mildew so I'd probably refuse to do it.
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