Pages

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Flea market find

Before I left Wisconsin, we went to the Elkhorn flea market where I found a great little antique quilt!! I love it.
It has a small stain and I'm not sure what it is or how to remove it.
Any suggestions? It might be ink but I'm not sure.



12 comments:

  1. OH, I love your find!! Such a pretty one...look at all those old, old fabrics!! I use caution when cleaning any old quilt, of course...is it all over dirty, or just that one stain?? Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I knew a gal who dealt in antique quilts in Massachusetts and always used Shaklee products when dealing with these old quilts. In particular she told us to use Nature Bright and Liquid L. You could check into these products with some quilt dealers and see if they are familiar with the results.

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a beautiful quilt, I love all of the colors!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh my what a great find........I'd ignore that stain unless it is filthy, just give it a good airing out on the line and call it wonderful!

    Happy Sewing

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've read about the wonders of OxyClean with antique quilts, but I've not tried it myself. I agree with Kim above. As long as the whole quilt isn't in need of a wash, I'd leave it alone and describe those ink-looking spots as part of the "charm" of the quilt.

    ReplyDelete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Pretty quilt. My grandmother was a quilter, and I remember her making several of them in this pattern. This design has several names (like most of them do) and she referred to it as *Periwinkle*. It's also known as *Snowball* and a couple others. I have a big collection of feedsacks--some whole ones, and boxes of scraps. I've been thinking about using them for a quilt like this one. :-)

    And back on-topic...to me, that looks like it could be the after-washing stains left from blood, wood stain, used motor oil, or...? I have used Oxy-clean several times on old linens and quilts and have had excellent results. I've used it on aged blood stains on a quilt (they were totally gone), and to remove general aging discoloration on a 1930's quilt top, as well as other vintage linens

    This quilt appears to be in very good, sturdy condition. I would soak it in a bath tub or washer full of hot water and dissolved Oxy-clean, leave it for 12-24 hours, swish it around occasionally, then rinse very well.

    A spray-on or dab-on mixture of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide is another good stain remover. I'm not sure of the ratio, but it can be found through internet searches.

    ReplyDelete
  8. What a beautiful find--lucky you! Personally, I would leave the stain alone--I ruined a vintage pillowcase by trying to remove a stain.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm with Kim and Vivian ... I'd just leave it alone though if it needs a good cleaning for other reasons then you might as well try the Oxy-clean suggestion. I think rinsing it in a tub THOROUGHLY is the best advice of all and then let it air dry completely. What a beauty ... what a find. Love that flea market in Elkhorn ... have been many times in the past ... always treasures to be found! Lucky you!!! Linda

    ReplyDelete
  10. ink or maybe blood that has oxidized...

    ReplyDelete
  11. I recently cleaned a quilt by soaking it in oxyclean! Worked perfectly!

    ReplyDelete
  12. What a pretty quilt. I do not have stain removing advice. Seems like the soaking is what I have seen recommended as well, but I don't have any antique quilts.

    ReplyDelete