Cleaning Vintage Linens and Quilts Tutorial

I have had several emails and comments wanting instructions on cleaning vintage linens and quilts. Because if that, I am going to repost and update my original post on cleaning vintage linens here today.

I have cleaned hundreds of linens using this method and I'd say 90% of the time, they turn out good as new. There have unfortunately been a few times when I have damaged some of the original cloth in old dresser scarves due to the fact that the piece had been folded for so many years that the fabrics were just too fragile at the fold lines and I did not realize that in time.

I did not trash these, as the work is still wonderful, I use these "accidental" pieces to maybe re-purpose them in the future. I'd say that this type of thing has happened maybe less than 5% of the time. So please, take what I have to share with you here and just be aware nothing is ever 100%.....but this is darn near!

 You will need: White Vinegar, Biz and Oxi-clean. (sometimes, I have a hard time finding the Biz, and have to check several stores to find it. My local grocer will order this if I ask, so keep that in mind if you have a hard time finding it near you.)

You will use:
Per gallon of water
1 scoop of Oxi-clean
1 scoop of Biz (Use the Oxi-clean scoop, not the scoop in the Biz) If you are mixing up 4 gallons of water, like I did here, you will need to use this recipe times 4 for it to be the correct mixture:

For example:
4 gallons of water
4 scoops of Oxi-Clean
4 scoops of Biz - using the Oxi-Clean scoop


In my original post, I was heating the water on the stove so it was very warm. I still do that if I am cleaning mostly WHITE linens.  I do not boil the water, I just heat it till it is hotter than from the tap. If I have several colored pieces, I just use the hot tap water. You can do this in the sink as well. Here I have them in a bucket.

My original post stated I usually soaked these for 24-48 hours. I have since stopped doing that. If the whites are really soiled and dirty, then yes, I do soak them up to 24 hours. But, I check on them and make sure they are not already clean and just sitting in the solution. I have found you really only need to soak these until they are clean.

For quilts......I run almost luke warm...NOT HOT water in the bathtub. Due to the colors in the quilts, I never use hot water. I add the soaps and usually mix it up times 5  for a half tub of water. (Pay no attention to the dirty tub....it was going to be cleaned, but decided to soak this quilt first...then clean) Yes, I sometimes have a dirty tub, with a son who works in a messy job some weeks, I don't get to it too quick.....just keepin it truthful! 

The colored water is the gunk being pulled from the fabrics. All that yellow discoloration you find in vintage linens...this is what is in the water. I usually let these quilts soak for maybe an hour or so. I check on it and if the water is REALLY dirty, I drain and repeat for about another half hour. Handle the quilt very gently.

This is a vintage apron I soaked in the sink. It washed up really well, with just a few spots that would not come out.

Once the quilt has soaked well, I rinse gently in the tub and hand wring. Then I wash it in the washer on gentle cycle with a very mild detergent. I add about a cup of vinegar to the rinse water and run it through the rinse cycle twice. The key is to get ALL the soaps out of the quilt and any vintage linens.

This is a picture of linens I had rinsed ( I thought well) before I added the vinegar, and once I added that,  you can see there was still soap in the fabrics.

And as always, I love to hang all my vintage quilts and linens out in the sun to dry. HERE is another quilt once it was cleaned. See the pretty white blocks? They were as yellow as yellow could be, it looked like the blocks were a sand color. Now, back to the original bright colors. This particular quilt once it was washed pulled a bit where the binding was sewn onto the quilt. I just restitched it by hand and it was as good as new. I have never had that happen with any other quilt, just this one and it was easily repaired. Once your quilt is dry, you can toss it in the dryer for a quick fluffing.

I hope that answers any questions you may have. If a piece has rust spots, this solution does not take the rust spots out...only the discolored yellow and most stains other than rust. There are rust removers you can purchase and I have been told that works well, but I have not tried it. For me, if I can get the piece back to the original white and bright colors, that is enough for me.

Good luck with this, and if you are as nervous and I was when I started using this solution, just start out with a small piece and work your way up to something larger, that is what I did. After I discovered I was not going to ruin my treasures, I tackled a quilt and it worked wonderfully.

I always use this same solution to soak and clean vintage sheets. I have a stack of vintage sheets waiting to be transformed into a quilt. The first thing I do when I bring them home is fill the tub and soak them before I wash them in the washer. Then line dry. They clean up so pretty I think and really makes them look fresh as new.

I guess you could say, I have a great love for vintage linens, but have a hard time bringing them home without cleaning them up right away. And when the process is as easy as this one....that makes it all the better!

I am linking in today with Smiling Sally, for Blue Monday...as I think it qualifies...lots of BLUE in this post!

Blue Monday: Charming Houses of Cripple Creek

I have mentioned before that one of my favorite places in the world is Cripple Creek Colorado. I love how the little town is nestled among the large Mountains of Colorado. There is plenty of charm from days gone by, one just needs to stop and take a look around.

My late mother in law, Pat, and I always talked about wanting to own a house in town. Most all of the houses are just loaded with charm. Many are close to being well over 100 years old, while many of the houses peppered in the mountains are indeed that old or older. I love driving down the streets and looking at all the little houses, most built very close together and think about what life must have been like here in this little Gold Mining town when the Gold Rush was in full swing.

Just look at this Blue Beauty. I absolutely love all the colors used in this house. This little gem was for sale, but even in the economy the way it is today...it was still out of my price range. I found the real estate office on line and this house was listed for $365,000.00. Now that made me blue........

Now, here is another house that just had me drooling. Notice the beautiful shades of blue in the trim of the house. We looked in all the windows, and read the information about this home. Most of the inside is still original from the 1800's. The hardwoods, the lamps, the molding, fireplace, all the light fixtures were original. When I saw the light fixtures in the dining room and living room, I was shocked at such beauty. You could tell this place in its day was the crowning jewel of this town. It sat on a small hill, just outside the main part of town, but still an easy walking distance to all the hustle and bustle of a mining town. I could picture myself here, enjoying the mountain views and being queen of this castle. I loved this place.

Another charming part of this house was the fence that surrounded the property. I loved it, all the colors and splendor had my head spinning. I felt like I could hear my mother in law whispering what a great place this would be.

Here is a view from one of the neighborhood streets, you will notice the house in the distance has a beautiful blue roof. That Blue Ford truck is Steve's pickup, he was patiently waiting for me to take my photos....well, not so patiently....but waiting he was!

Hope you enjoyed a look at some historic homes in Cripple Creek Colorado.

Be sure to visit Sally at Smiling Sally's Blog for a Great Blue Monday with lots of beautiful blues to see today. It makes a great way to start off the week.

Blue Monday : Finished Baby Quilt Top

I can not believe it is Monday already...and a Blue Monday over at Smiling Sally's blog. If you like blue...you will love visiting Sally and all the blue participants showing off the blues!!

I finished my baby quilt top. I hope to start quilting this on Wednesday....if permitted since I did not make this quilt in class, but at home. We will see. I think it qualifies for Blue Monday due to the pretty blue borders in the quilt. I still need to buy the backing fabrics and the fabric for the binding and I will be ready to start quilting this one.




Thanks for stopping by today...have a great week everyone! I am going today to a quilting class at a different quilting shop. It is a one day class, and we are making the most adorable snowman wall hanging...and guess what? They use a lot of blue fabrics...so I hopefully can show you this latest project in a week or two!!

Blue Monday : Thrifted Nightstand Makeover

It's Monday already, and a Blue Monday over at Smiling Sally's blog. Sally host Blue Monday every week, and this week, I have something to show you!

My daughter, Alisha who is off at college, recently moved into a new apartment. She needed a nightstand to put by her bed, and we could not find anything she really liked for a price I was willing to pay. I suggested my go-to place to have a look around and see if we could find something...you know the place....Goodwill.

Here is the cute little table which was a Goodwill find. This matches her room perfectly, and is in great, solid shape. Look closely, there is blue on the top of the table. Isn't it so nice to find the perfect thing when you are looking for it? Now, do you think we purchased this in this condition?

There is lots of blue in Alisha's room, the comforters and curtains are a light, ice blue. I think it is a very calming color for a bedroom. One more glance of the cute little table.....now, let me show you how it all started.

Not so pretty table found at Goodwill. This was the only one we found that might work. I convinced my daughter we needed to get this table, and not to worry, it would be adorable when I was finished with it. I think she might have been worried.

The table was painted black when we bought it, dirty, and here is a look at the top, which was not bad if you like looking at something that reminds me of school desk tops from my youth. I don't think Alisha was to keen on this idea.

Nice retro drawer pull. Nothing too cute about faded gold on a drawer pull. I was not concerned at all, after all I had spray paint to take care of this problem.

First, I sanded the table and drawer with medium grit sandpaper. Then wiped clean. Using some spray primer, I gave the table a good coat of spray primer.

I did not spray the tabletop, only the table itself. We purchased some oops paint in a chocolate brown from Home Depot. Great deal on a gallon of paint, only $5.00.

Here is the table once the paint dried. Two coats of paint was all this little table needed.

Sophie stopped to pose. She knows when the camera comes out, if she poses sweetly, she may get a treat or two. She decided not to waste the opportunity, and stopped to pose. Sophie would like to ask the good people if they see how the color of the table matches the velvety brown color of her eyes?

Now, it was time to tackle the top. Using scrapbook paper, Mod Podge, and a paint brush, I Mod Podged the top of the table to match Alisha's room.

Even the drawer got a little glam. This is such a super easy project, and turns ordinary finds into something really cute and functional and very inexpensive.

Here is another view of the top. I did a collage on top of the table, and I like the way it turned out. I put three coats of Mod Podge on the top and side of the table top to seal it well.

I was glad to see the old school desk top disappear. Don't you think the new top looks much better than this old wood grain look?

Here is another close-up of the table. You can see the light blue in this photo much clearer. If you look closely, you will see the cute little blue birds.

A little left over Rustoleum paint we had on hand changed the way the knob looked too. Now it does not have the Asian flare, and looks much better after I covered up the tarnished gold knob.

Here is the table in Alisha's new room. You will not believe the cost of this particular project.

Table: $7.00 at Goodwill....but I had a $10.00 coupon so the table did not cost us anything.
Paint: $5.00 at Home Depot - used oops paint.
Scrapbook paper: - $2.38 from Michaels

I had everything else on hand at home for this project. Not bad for $7.38. It is amazing what you can do with a little imagination and a little elbow grease.

Here is another shot of Alisha's room. My mom bought the shelving unit for Alisha for Christmas a few years back, she has saved it and we just now put it together. It really is cute and matches the table really well. If you will notice, the curtains are a teal blue. There is also a blue bear on the shelf, and the upper right corner is a glimpse of a blue wall hanging.

I hope you enjoyed this little makeover project. Remember next time you see a not so cute furniture piece and it is structurally sound, just think of all the possibilities of turning it into a real treasure.

Have a great Blue Monday everyone!

Blue Monday : Turning Outdated Glass Jars into Art

A couple of weeks ago, I had an idea to turn outdated glass jars into something functional and more up to date. I am going to show you what you can do with some great yard sale, thrift store or Goodwill finds for little money. I know everyone remembers these glass containers with the designs on them from the 80's right? I see them all the time in thrift stores, and up until lately, I have left them sitting on the shelf.

It was not until my daughter started working at a Country Club and needed something to keep her tips in at home until she went to the bank, that I decided that these out of date jars just might be re-purposed into a more modern look and functional too.

All you need is some of these jars with lids. The one on the left, I bought for $1.00. When I got home, and took the tape off the lid, I saw the lid handle was broken off. I am going to file it as best I can, and go ahead and transform this into a much more desirable looking jar...the broken handle will not be missed. See the little jar in front. That is a jar from the 80's I am sure, I remember that pattern...cost....25 cents. Now grab a few jars next time you are out treasure hunting....

Along with a few scrapbook papers, a rubber stamp and ink pad, a paint brush, some mod podge and a few choice embellishments is all it takes to transform a dated glass container into something decorated with a updated look.

First, tear the papers into small pieces, mod Podge onto glass container and lid. For some reason, I do not have the pictures of the glass container being transformed....sorry, you will have to just follow along with the lid.

I used about three coats of mod Podge. There will be a few lumps and bubbles, but don't worry, once it dries, those will disappear for the most part.

I put this on pretty thick with a brush. Let dry in between coats.

I used a little sticker on the top with Alisha's initial. Then just mod podged over all of it.

Once you have let all the coats dry, it is time to embellish your work. I used some vintage lace and trim along with buttons, ribbons and flowers to embellish this one.

I used a stamp and wrote a message inside the jar. I stamped the paper before it was mod podged onto the outer glass, that way when you look inside, there is a message there. In the lower left are the words "I love you"....you can barely see it....but it is there to remind my daughter I love her!



Here is a look at the stamp work, stickers and little buttons that adorn the sides of the jar.

I used the vintage lace to make a flower, and glued the paper flower on top of the lace one. I like the soft look it gives the jar.

Here is the lid, finished. I used the vintage lace to go around the base of the lid, and put a cute little bow over the lace, the lock and key is a cute little romantic touch I think.

Here is the finished jar. This was made for holding Alisha's tip monies in. She needed something to keep her money in, and I thought this would help conceal her money and look cute sitting on her desk shelf at the same time. I think it turned out really cute. This is super easy...even if you are not a crafter.

So next time you are at Goodwill or garage sales and see those dated glass containers, remember they can be transformed for little money and without much effort. Just choose the colors and theme for your jar, and the sky is the limit. Be sure to report back if you make a jar and let me see your finished product....how fun will that be??

Visit Smiling Sally's Blog for more great Blue Monday participants and Blues. Have a great week everyone!!

Blue Monday: Quilted Ornaments, Smiling Snowmen and a Holiday Print

Happy Blue Monday everyone! Blue Monday is hosted by Smiling Sally and she keeps us all in good spirits to start off the week. Click HERE to visit Sally's blog and visit all the other Blue Monday participants. I have a few more Christmas items that have blue in them to show you today....

This print was acquired from my mother in law's estate. This is a wonderful Christmas print of Krug Park in St. Joseph Missouri. The print is by Augustine Heckman titled "Honk the Horn, Daddy! There are lots of blues in this print, the photo does not do it justice. My husbands family was originally from St. Joe, and this is a print of the Boulevard running through Krug Park and depicts how is was decorated during the holiday season. This really a special piece in our holiday collection.

Here is a photo of my Debbie Mumm platter of happy snowmen. This sits on my kitchen counter and keeps me of good cheer while I cook during the holiday season.

Here is a photo of one of my quilted angel ornaments on my tree. I have several of these, but this one had more blue on her wings.

Here is a vintage blue and red quilted star ornament. The principal at my kid's elementary school quilted several of these ornaments and I purchased them at a silent auction.

This lovely angel was another ornament purchased at the silent auction from the school. These are real treasures, and I love it that they are made from vintage quilts.

Have a great Blue Monday everyone!! Be sure to click HERE and enter this weeks giveaway....this is the last week in my Christmas Cheer 5 week giveaway.