topic Re: Laundry Experts I need help in Home

Laundry Experts I need help UPDATE!!

Abrowneyegirl — Sat, 29 Aug 2020 19:24:03 GMT

Many years ago I worked with a woman from India, her family was in the textile business.

I remember her telling me how to properly use starch. She always hated to see wrinkled linen and fabrics and would tell it was because Americans did not understand how to properly starch fabric.

I can remember:

1- NEVER use spray starch in a can. Make your own using tapioca pearls.

2- No starch on dry fabric

3- something about adding the starch water to one of the washing cycles.

Can anyone help me? It has been such a hot and humid summer I am tired of looking like a slept in my clothes at the end of the day and I also love linen and hate the wrinkles. She always looked crisp and lovely.

I have been Googling all day......

So using the tips here and my notes I did an experiment.

Using the tapioca starch on 4 pairs of cotton ankle pants.

I promptly (as prompt as a busy person can) removed from the washer shook them out and hung to dry.

3 of the 4 pants dried almost perfectly, no wrinkles I did not bother to iron them

the 4th pair need some touch up pressing around some seams.

I wore them this week in 90 + heat with horrible humidity.

They lasted the entire day 10 hours with very, very little wrinkles. I looked crisp almost all day. (except for my blouses!- some of them wrinkled quite a bit)

Next, I will try some of my linen clothing.

Thank you for your tips!

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

fthunt — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 18:45:08 GMT

I saw my Mother make starch for our summer lace curtains. No thanks........I'll keep my spray can.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

ahoymate — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 19:14:05 GMT

What? India is so different culturally than the USA. Like comparing apples to oranges. I always use spray starch. Google this topic or go to Martha Stewart's book on tips for doing laundry.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

ahoymate — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 18:47:36 GMT

@fthunt wrote:
I saw my Mother make starch for our summer lace curtains. No thanks........I'll keep my spray can.

Of course. Who wants to make their own starch today?

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Etoile308 — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 18:54:35 GMT

Have you looked in a large grocery store for liquid starch?

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

SilleeMee — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 19:19:20 GMT

When I was a kid my mom would use Faultless starch in the box. She would use it on my dad's Army fatigues, hang 'em on the line and then press them after they dried, They were stiff as all get out! like cardboard, omg. They could stand up on their own...lol! I always knew when my dad was putting on a fresh pair of fatigue pants. I could here him push his feet through each pant leg...sounded like a loud RRRRip!

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

ECBG — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 19:20:59 GMT

I use Magic Spray Sizing next to the starch when I press linen. I get firmness without the linen becoming "hard".

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Kachina624 — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 19:32:36 GMT

@SilleeMee wrote:
When I was a kid my mom would use Faultless starch in the box. She would use it on my dad's Army fatigues, hang 'em on the line and then press them after they dried, They were stiff as all get out! like cardboard, omg. They could stand up on their own...lol! I always knew when my dad was putting on a fresh pair of fatigue pants. I could here him push his feet through each pant leg...sounded like a loud RRRRip!

I was in the military in the '60s when we had to wear starched cotton skirts and a jacket in the summer. They would literally stand alone. However, the starch surely didn't keep them from becoming wrinkled. They were a mess at the end of the day. Hated those things.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Abrowneyegirl — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 20:36:14 GMT

@ahoymate wrote:
@fthunt wrote:
I saw my Mother make starch for our summer lace curtains. No thanks........I'll keep my spray can.
Of course. Who wants to make their own starch today?

Making the starch is not hard. I remember it was put tapioca pearls in a container fill with water let the pearls dissolve. Add more pearls as needed.

It is the how to use it I can not remember.

Add it to the rinse cycle?? I wish I wrote it down.

The more I think about it there were a few ways to use the pearl mixture.

The goal was stiff but flexible and to not damage the fibers of the cotton.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Still Raining — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 20:48:32 GMT

I still do linen table items the old way. Also a few shirt collars and all cotton jeans if I want the waist to look good for a belt.

I use the cornstarch rocks dissolved on hot water.

First wash the item, then while still wet, soak in the starch, really dunk. You can dry it a little or a lot, but in the end you want a uniformity damp item. So spraying with water is sometimes involved. Roll it up, wrap and let it sit a bit.

It can not be ironed with steam, it just needs a good hot iron. They are a lot of work, it so nice for a special time.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Dinaki — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 21:09:27 GMT

When it comes to iron clothes, I am awafully picky.

We the Greeks, iron everything, including the underwear.

This is the brand I use in Athens, in America I buy what I find at the grocery shelve

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

RedTop — Sun, 23 Aug 2020 22:12:07 GMT

To starch during the wash process, add liquid starch to the final rinse cycle. My dads work shirts were starched this way.

Mom only used the scratch made starch mixture for crocheted doilies. After they went thru the wringer washer wash and rinse, she dunked them into the starch mixture until well coated, gently squeezed the starch out, and blocked the doilies on bath towels on the ironing board until they dried stiff as a board.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Abrowneyegirl — Mon, 24 Aug 2020 00:38:16 GMT

@Still Raining wrote:
I still do linen table items the old way. Also a few shirt collars and all cotton jeans if I want the waist to look good for a belt.

I use the cornstarch rocks dissolved on hot water.

First wash the item, then while still wet, soak in the starch, really dunk. You can dry it a little or a lot, but in the end you want a uniformity damp item. So spraying with water is sometimes involved. Roll it up, wrap and let it sit a bit.

It can not be ironed with steam, it just needs a good hot iron. They are a lot of work, it so nice for a special time.

Thank you.

Now I remember the resting phase and the NO steam only a hot iron.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Still Raining — Mon, 24 Aug 2020 14:59:34 GMT

@Abrowneyegirl wrote:
@Still Raining wrote:
I still do linen table items the old way. Also a few shirt collars and all cotton jeans if I want the waist to look good for a belt.

I use the cornstarch rocks dissolved on hot water.

First wash the item, then while still wet, soak in the starch, really dunk. You can dry it a little or a lot, but in the end you want a uniformity damp item. So spraying with water is sometimes involved. Roll it up, wrap and let it sit a bit.

It can not be ironed with steam, it just needs a good hot iron. They are a lot of work, it so nice for a special time.
Thank you.
Now I remember the resting phase and the NO steam only a hot iron.

Good luck to you. It is a process but does look good.

Of course you can use the refrigerator for more long term storage 😂 but you didn't hear that from me.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Mellyg — Tue, 25 Aug 2020 03:44:16 GMT

I am a fanatic about ironing table linens and my. Ironing sheets can be a pain, but is heaven after a long day. I don't use starch. I do not put any of these items in the dryer and let air dry for an hour or so. Then I iron on hot. But make sure the items are damp. My linens and sheets stay crisp.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Tinkrbl44 — Tue, 25 Aug 2020 18:01:18 GMT

@Kachina624 wrote:
@SilleeMee wrote:
When I was a kid my mom would use Faultless starch in the box. She would use it on my dad's Army fatigues, hang 'em on the line and then press them after they dried, They were stiff as all get out! like cardboard, omg. They could stand up on their own...lol! I always knew when my dad was putting on a fresh pair of fatigue pants. I could here him push his feet through each pant leg...sounded like a loud RRRRip!
I was in the military in the '60s when we had to wear starched cotton skirts and a jacket in the summer. They would literally stand alone. However, the starch surely didn't keep them from becoming wrinkled. They were a mess at the end of the day. Hated those things.

@Abrowneyegirl

She's right .... Starch may stiffen a fabric but it's not a wrinkle remover/preventer. Linen wrinkles .. a lot. Try wearing more cotton or cotton knit fabrics.

Re: Laundry Experts I need help

Abrowneyegirl — Tue, 25 Aug 2020 18:06:51 GMT

@Tinkrbl44

This was my co-worker's point. Americans use starch to stiffen fabric which makes the wrinkles worse.

She explained in India the goal of starch was to add body with flexibility- NOT stiffness.

She could wear cotton linen all day and still look lovely after 10 hours. I wear cotton linen and I looked (her quote) "like a child that woke up after sleeping in their clothes" LOL and I did!