How to clean a quilt?
By jillbeth
@jillbeth (2705)
United States
February 26, 2007 7:54am CST
I have a quilt my grandmother made that my dad recently gave to me. It is at least 30 years old and looks like it has never been cleaned. I hesitate to take it to the dry cleaners for fear it may "accidentally" come up missing! It is hand-stitched, appears to be cotton fabric. Is it safe to wash it in a washing machine? If so, would it be better to use a front-loading machine at the laundromat instead of my washer that agitates? I really hate for anything to happen to it! Any advice is appreciated.
1 person likes this
3 responses
@poppyscarlet (29)
•
26 Feb 07
What about hand washing the item just in water to get the surface dirt out? Or maybe just adda a little washing detergent if the obvious marks don't come out.
With hand washing you'll have more control over the temperature of the water and the level of agitation as opposed to machine washing.
1 person likes this
@jillbeth (2705)
• United States
27 Feb 07
Not a bad idea, although labor intensive, it is a rather large quilt! I could soak it in the bathtub. I will probably try that first and see if it comes clean enough. When I get it clean I will post a picture of it, it really is gorgeous. It is concentric rings of tiny little diamonds. It must have taken her forever to stitch!
My grandmother had four bedrooms in her home, and two beds in every room cause she had so many kids. Every bed had a quilt in a different pattern, and I loved them all. I was so thrilled when Dad gave me this one!
@applsofgld (2506)
• United States
26 Feb 07
I don't know if I'd chance washing it in a machine. I would maybe call around to find a reliable dry cleaners. Explain your worries to them, see if they can do it in the one hour or at least one day service. It would be risky to me to chance putting something that old and valuabale in any kind of washing machine. Wish you the best of luck in finding a good solution.
@applsofgld (2506)
• United States
8 Mar 07
Thank you for best response. I hope you found a good solution to your quilt cleaning.
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
26 Feb 07
You should be able to wash it without a problem but I would take it to a front loading machine. One it will fit better and as you pointed out less movement on it to hurt it. Yes taking it to be dry cleaned might be best but if you don't want to do that then I would go with the front loader. Most quilts are made from materiels that can go in the washer. I know I've put them in there without a problem.
