Cleaning Vintage Linens

Cleaning your vintage linens that have yellowed with age can be tricky. However, it can be done. First, make sure that the material itself is in good shape. If it is already fraying apart through age, then you may need to consult a professional dry cleaner.

But if the material is still sturdy and there are no colors (such as patterns or embroidery) on it, then wet it down and then soak it in a "mild" bleach solution for 1 - 2 hours. Gently squeeze dry and hang it in the sun to dry. Often the combination of the bleach and the sun will brighten and lighten the color, and get rid of that yellow.

If there are colors on your material, then do not use bleach. I have found that sometimes soaking in a solution of OxiClean will do the job, again along with drying in the sun.

For small stains or yellowed spots sometimes a baking soda paste directly applied to the spot and left to dry will help. Sometimes none of this works, but there are still thrifty alternatives.

I have a vintage lace tablecloth that was just too badly yellowed and I could not get it to lighten up. So I chose the solution of actually dyeing it a light yellow, and giving it a new life as a colored table covering. And I have had many compliments over the years on my sunshine-colored lace tablecloth!

Another solution is cover-up. If there are small spots and stains that won't come out try embroidering a small design on the piece and make sure your handiwork covers up the stains! My granddaughters like to embroider and we have done a few examples of this type of repair/cover-up together. And then you have a vintage piece with even more meaning.

As my own mother taught me, a little bit of cleaning and ingenuity can go a long way.

By Aunt Peg from Ft. Worth, TX