I'm proud to be the new owner of this vintage Bertoia diamond chair circa 1960-something. After a heart-pounding eBay auction, this baby finally arrived at my door (well, back door, thanks DHL)! Once I unpacked it and put it back together, I'm contemplating giving the full seat cover a thorough clean. Considering that the cover has the OG Knoll tags still attached, I wasn't expecting pristine or brand new--and luckily, there aren't any major stains on either.
I asked around to see if any of my fellow vintage-loving furniture scavengers had any tips of products they've used to clean up old upholstery before tackling the project. Here's a few tips (although if you've tried any of these and think they're bunk, let us know):
- Nature's Miracle or Resolve. I've honestly only used these cleaners for accidents of the pet kind, but it seems like it would be handy in doing some cleaning. And considering that it's geared towards pet damage, there's an added safety that it won't harm pets or children.
- Tuff Stuff. Also an interesting choice, but my neighbor swears by it. After all, he cleaned up a pretty major coffee stain in his car's upholstery...after it had already set a week later.
- Use a small steam cleaner, ie Bissel Power Steamer Pro, if you're really looking for some heavy duty help. I actually tried this out--just water and the Bissel--and it worked really well. No chemicals needed!
- Baking soda and vinegar
Anyone have any other tips to add?
Take to the cleaners, how about taking the cover off and taking it to your corner dry cleaner. Might be worth a try and might be the cheapest.
view ENTENZA's profile
does it have a cover that just comes off? I know zip about this type of furniture, but while googling upholstery I ran across this guy restoring an Egg Chair, and am fascinated by his process, and patience,
http://mitchellpowellfurnishings.com/rest_p_Egg%20Chair.htm
he did an amazing job w/ that chair, and seems to know his stuff, in a PDF on his conservation site...
http://www.mpfconservation.com/PDF/W06%20CARING%20FOR%20ANTIQUE%20FURNITURE.pdf
... he says 'no' to dry cleaners (skip to pg7, god the font is obnoxious) just vacuum, maybe email him?
view southof290's profile
I'm a grad student studying textile conservation and I agree with southof290, you should not dry clean it. What you want to do is a technique called wet cleaning. It is a gentle handwashing that works surprisingly well. Here is an article describing the process: www.quilthistory.com/ptr-wet%20cleaning.doc And like you noticed, water tackles a lot of dirt, sometimes its all that is necessary.
view enlovei7's profile