It's Fall and we have a ton of fresh, bright colors coming into our homes. It's all the rage to have bold hues in your home or on your body, but do you know how to best take care of the fabric to keep it looking its brightest? It doesn't matter if it's a new scarf, pillowcase, drapery panel or throw rug, here's how to keep that color in tip top shape!
Repeated washing of many fabrics has a tendency to knock out some of its punch when it comes to color or the intensity of the design or pattern. Likewise, sun can also do the same thing.
To help protect your fabrics, try tossing your linens and clothes into the wash with a tablespoon of salt. The chloride will help seal the color in and keep it looking fresher longer. It works for rugs, it works for scarves, it works for anything that's machine washable. As Martha would say, "It's a good thing."
Related: Use Chalk To Rid Your Clothes Of Greasy Stains
Image: Emma Christensen
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Comments (13)
i'll give it a try!
white vinegar does the same thing!
thanks for reminding wht grandmom always mentioned :)
Ooh, I just ran out of Oxy Clean, so I'll try this. BTW, does anyone have suggestions on how to keep fabric from pilling in the dryer?
Can it be added w/ the detergent or is the salt in lieu of??? When should the vinegar be added?
using salt, baking soda, or white vinegar adds oomf to the soap (I usually use a tiny bit of Clean Day Soap with a quarter cup of baking soda) but they also make everything smell better. Even the washer itself.
This is a classic old-wives tale and is just not true in most cases. Vinegar and salt do have very limited fixative effects with certain natural dyes. And is not particularly effective even with most of those. Vinegar helps with dyes that require more acidity; baking soda with those needing a more caustic fixative. You can actually increase fading by adding the wrong one. And then there's the issue of fabric type.
But today, most fabrics are colored with chemical dyes and are completely unaffected by our great-grandmother's home remedies. If you are interested in fixing dyes, check out Dharma Trading company and match the fixative to the dye and fabric type. But, you should know that nearly all manufacturers have already done this. These fixatives are used by we who still dye our own fabric...
Joy: Dry the thing inside out, or don't put things that pill in the dryer.
I use vinegar to keep clothes from stiffening up too much while line-drying and to keep the microbes in my front-loader to a minimum.
Seems like salt would stain some clothes. Especially silk!
One of my first jobs was working for a drycleaner. People would bring washables in for drycleaning, hoping the dyes wouldn't fade if they cleaned their garments that way. My boss always sent them home with the advice to soak the garments in cold salt water before washing them.
My mom taught this trick. I do not why but she prefers to use coarse salt.
@quiltmaster has some very good points.
Another tip that I use all the time (because I get forgetful) if you forget to move your clothes from the washer to he dryer and they get that mildew smell rewash them with a cup or so of vinegar along with the soap. The acetic acid in the vinegar kills the mildew and the laundry doesn't smell bad any longer.