Tuesday, June 19, 2012

The smell that stuck

Help! I can't get the smell out! Any ideas on this wool fabric?

I got fabric for $2 at an estate sale and I can't get the stink out. Anyone have experience washing it in the washer machine on the wool setting and drying it on zero heat in the dryer?

4 comments:

  1. Gorgeous fabrics! What a pity they smell =( I'd run them through the washer on wool-setting, maybe with a detergent adopted for wool. Personally, I'd avoid the tumbler completly and just let the fabrics drip-dry, thhen maybe steam it before sewing to pre-treat it to heat and smooth out any wrinkles from hang-drying.

    Or I'd hand it in to hte dry-cleaners, a bit depending on what type of garment you plan to make of it.

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  2. Oh that's so annoying! I really believe sun-drying it is the best thing to do with most smell! Good luck with it!

    PS. What waist size are you? I have a pattern that's supposed to be 24.5" waist but from the waist band pattern, it seems to be under 24" so I'm not sure whether I should resize it or just give it away!

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    Replies
    1. Lol, oh my, I haven't been that small since before I had kids. I'm a 27.5 now. It's not hard to resize waistlines, I can help if it's a pattern you really like. Try measuring the top of the skirt part instead of the waistband. I never get good results with the waistband. I do have several patterns though that have so much ease built into the waist that I find I can use a pattern with a 25.5 inch waist pattern and it often fits. There have been some exceptions to that rule (I.e. the Lucy dress) but its really easy to fix.

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  3. A friend had this same problem with wool yarn and solved it by soaking it in baking soda and water solution, then rinsing She'd previously tried a vinegar wash and that didn't help.

    Sometimes hanging the item to air, especially in sun, will remove a not-terrible smell.

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