I was getting ready for the faire this week and realized I had orange stains on my lovely chemise! I did some reading and apparently some sunscreens react to hard water and turn into rust stains. We use water softener, but apparently that's not enough. I was advised to let me chemise soak in some OxyClean and Dawn over night and then wash it. I did as instructed and it doesn't look any better. It actually gained a couple blue lines somehow during the process. This chemise is ruined and I spent a fair amount on it. I'm gutted I spent so much on a one use chemise that seemed to be of great quality. I have no choice but to wear it as is this Saturday. How can I keep this from happening in the future? I know I'm not the only person to wear sunscreen at the faire with a muslin/cotton chemise. How do you all keep your chemises from staining?
Actually, I rarely wear sunscreen. I'm allergic to a couple of them and it's easier to just grab a parasol and gloves.
Handwash the chemise. Soak it, again, in oxyclean. Use a LOT of oxyclean. Wait an hour and use the powder detergent to hand wash the chemise this time.
I've used a combination of blue Dawn dish detergent, baking soda and hydrogen peroxide as a spot cleaner. (1 part Dawn 2 parts peroxide soda to make it less fluid) Let it set on the stains for a couple hours and wash.
I hand washed it the first time which I guess resulted in the stains since it reacted to the hard water. The second time I did it I used distilled water.
The stains are long streaks around the sleeves, shoulders, and neck area going down. There's a lot of orange. Spot treating it would mean pretty much just soaking the whole thing in it.
Did you try just machine washing it with bleach? Muslin is pretty hardy stuff and can take a fair amount of rough treatment.
No because it's unbleached muslin.
Is dying it a possible option? Maybe a nice, rich burnt orange color? I have no idea if it would cover the other stains, but if they don't come out it would be a shame to not ever be able to use a nice piece of garb again!
Oh, and what about the stain removers that are sold in the fabric stores? I've never actually tried any of them, but there is one sold at Hancock Fabrics that several seamstresses I know swear by, for removing anything. It's this stuff (http://www.hancockfabrics.com/Grandma-s-Secret-Spot-Remover-Stain-Removers_stcVVproductId87498306VVcatId539603VVviewprod.htm), and quite a few people I've asked about it actually rave about this stuff! It doesn't cost much, so maybe worth a try?
Quote from: Irish Maiden Fair on October 10, 2013, 10:55:34 PM
No because it's unbleached muslin.
Muslin is so rugged that even using household bleach doesn't change it much, unless you use the whole bottle. I would suggest you try the Dawn dish liquid first and then machine wash with bleach.
I agree with DonaCatalina...Go with the bleach. I've bleached unbleached muslin before and it doesn't lose it's "natural" tan-ish color. It lightens only a tiny bit if at all....you won't get bright pure white. You could also try soaking it in Simple Green (the stuff you get in the automotive section for cleaning your whitewall tires and such). I got a burgundy wine stain out of a white shirt with that stuff...and it didn't even leave a "shadow"!! Make sure you get the REAL Simple Green...the other "Green Cleaner" types don't work as well. You can find it at Walmart or any auto store. Plus, it's natural so there aren't harsh chemically smells or anything that would hurt the fabric.
You can try Dreft in the place of the regular laundry detergent. I use it to get set in stains out of natural fibers. If it can get old formula stains off of cotton baby shirts, it may work on this.
Get a bucket (gallon or two) of hot water-add a cup or two of Dreft add chemise, and Let set overnight. Hope something works!
Rust and Bleach don't work so well together, try Iron out follow directions.
I had also heard rust and bleach were a bad combo. I'll look into some of the other stain removers.
I soak all of my festival shirts in a bucket with 2 big scoops of Oxyclean for 3 days once festival is done for the season. It pulled out the gnarly set in stains that I had on the sleeves.
Quote from: Rani Zemirah on October 11, 2013, 01:40:23 AM
Oh, and what about the stain removers that are sold in the fabric stores? I've never actually tried any of them, but there is one sold at Hancock Fabrics that several seamstresses I know swear by, for removing anything. It's this stuff (http://www.hancockfabrics.com/Grandma-s-Secret-Spot-Remover-Stain-Removers_stcVVproductId87498306VVcatId539603VVviewprod.htm), and quite a few people I've asked about it actually rave about this stuff! It doesn't cost much, so maybe worth a try?
I have a bottle of Grandmas' that I bought on a whim. I have tried it on two grease spots and it didn't work either time. I tried Oxyclean sprayon pretreater with the same results.
Shout works fine on practically all stains,
and got the two out that Grandma's and Oxyclean left behind.
I don't know if it's the water in our area, but Shout is the only thing that works.
Quote from: Amyj on October 11, 2013, 09:15:38 AM
I agree with DonaCatalina...Go with the bleach. I've bleached unbleached muslin before and it doesn't lose it's "natural" tan-ish color. It lightens only a tiny bit if at all....you won't get bright pure white. You could also try soaking it in Simple Green (the stuff you get in the automotive section for cleaning your whitewall tires and such). I got a burgundy wine stain out of a white shirt with that stuff...and it didn't even leave a "shadow"!! Make sure you get the REAL Simple Green...the other "Green Cleaner" types don't work as well. You can find it at Walmart or any auto store. Plus, it's natural so there aren't harsh chemically smells or anything that would hurt the fabric.
We used Simple Green to clean upholstery and carpets in aircraft.
We would soak grease stained fabric seat covers overnight and it works great.
I don't like it for home laundry because I don't care for the Wintergreen smell; reminds me too much of the stuff the janitor at my elementary school used to sprinkle on pools of puke. Ewwww. It neutralizes offensive odors very well, just make sure you get the real stuff. You don't want to use it full strength unless you want some serious decreasing, (I use it on my BBQ grill) a little goes a long way.
I have yet to find a fabric that it will harm, and it won't effect the color.
Quote...I tried Oxyclean sprayon pretreater with the same results.
Shout works fine on practically all stains, and got the two out that Grandma's and Oxyclean left behind.
I don't know if it's the water in our area, but Shout is the only thing that works.
I think your water actually makes a HUGE difference in how well different cleaning products work. We were talking about this recently on a needlework board I'm on--with members from all over the world--and the stain removing (or not) results people got from different products were incredible. A friend who just moved to New Jersey from California said that all of a sudden, Oxyclean actually brightens her whites... which it never did in CA (same washing machine). I like OxyClean because it takes away the doggy smell on my dogs' laundry... but it doesn't do much to brighten anything. HOWEVER, we just started using one of their stain sprays, and I have had absolutely stunning results with it. Stains that have been there for years... gone.
It's totally a YMMV case.
Rowan, I can't stand wintergreen either. Blech.
Quote from: Rowen MacD on October 31, 2013, 03:48:31 PMreminds me too much of the stuff the janitor at my elementary school used to sprinkle on pools of puke. Ewwww.
I have that same awful smell memory....
Gina
Water makes a massive difference...
I live on the North Downs, in Kent. In this part of England the water is like cement. (Almost literally! The Blue Circle cement manufacturers have works here!) It comes straight out of the aquifers bored into the chalk. Great for your bones, dire for washing.
We have a water softener fitted. This means that not only do I use about a quarter of the washing powder recommended for this area, but also I never use fabric conditioner, and my stuff comes out softer, cleaner, and brighter than that of folk without a softener, but also dyes take better when I machine dye cloth. Though the initial outlay is pricey (£400-£1200 depending on the type of softener you have), the savings over the lifetime of the softener are amazing.
Over the last 30 years we have used 1/4-1/3 of the washing powder, washing up liquid, hand soap, shampoo, etc. that we would otherwise have used. It's amazing how much tapwater this saves on rinsing... And how much it prolongs the life of your central heating system and white goods! The initial outlay plus running costs have been far outweighed by the savings elsewhere. I have heard people in limestone hard water areas have similar experiences.
Last year our softener finally dies after 30 years of use. We replaced it. The couple of weeks without it were dreadful! Washing looked dull, hair was rough and tangly (that's the thing I notice instantly: if I wash my hair somewhere away from home, even with lashings of conditioner, it's far rougher, more easily knotted, and much harder to manage than at home), skin got itchy and flaky, and the kettle furred up! And the clothes felt horrid...
It's well worth looking into the type of water in your area, the treatment it gets before it comes out of your taps, and the best types of laundry products for your local conditions. I find I only need to use any type of pre-treatment on greasy stains, and rarely use a bleaching agent. When I do, it's this:
(http://www.dr-beckmann.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/Glow5-450x450.jpg) or (http://www.dylon.co.uk/image_tools/media/image_Au7U2bguvg-92b33a411f99033a3a236142aee66539.jpg)
I usually only need it if something has permanently dyed a pale item.