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#1
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Nicotine stains on needlework
I recently received a stamped cross-stitch that my grandmother did many,
many years ago (at least 40). It had been professionally framed under glass; however, she had been a very heavy smoker, and the protective covering on the back has been torn. I don't know if it was torn while it was hanging in her home or after my ex-SIL got it, but there are definite nicotine stains on the fabric. I would like to clean it and then reframe it in the original frame. Any ideas? Use the Oxy product? Will the threads be colorfast? This needlework is in pictures I have that were taken before I was born, so it is at least 38+ years old. Thanks for your help! Carolyn |
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#2
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"Carolyn Wagner" ) writes:
I recently received a stamped cross-stitch that my grandmother did many, many years ago (at least 40). It had been professionally framed under glass; however, she had been a very heavy smoker, and the protective covering on the back has been torn. I don't know if it was torn while it was hanging in her home or after my ex-SIL got it, but there are definite nicotine stains on the fabric. I would like to clean it and then reframe it in the original frame. Any ideas? Use the Oxy product? Will the threads be colorfast? This needlework is in pictures I have that were taken before I was born, so it is at least 38+ years old. Thanks for your help! Carolyn Personally I would use the "softly, softly, catchee monkey" approach. That is, start with the gentlest cleaners, and if they dont work, go to more and more harsh ones. So start of with things like the horse shampoo (I am having a senior's moment. I cannot remember the name). Then if the stains dont go, move to Tide. If you think you need a bleach, I would use hydrogen peroxide first. If none of these work, then go on to Oxyclean, chlorine bleach etc. But I suggest you take your time. Its been stained for a long time, so a few days or weeks trying to clean it should be no big deal. Dont be afraid to soak it in cleansers for days, put it out in the sun, etc.etc. HTH. -- Jim Cripwell. The gods do not subtract from the allotted span of one's life, any time that is spent in stitching. Adapted from a sign on The Cobb, Lyme Regis, England. |
#3
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More than likely - because of different environmental rules at the time
- the threads are more colorfast than they are today. I trust my very old threads over the newer ones. Ammonia is great at removing the residue from smokers. Don't hesitate to use it. A nice soak with regular dish detergent will clean them away. I've used ammonia on silk, linen, cotton, blends without any harm. I actually dab it on with a clean wash cloth as a spot cleaner for lipstick, face powder (dry and liquid), masquera and other oily stains. It works quickly and rarely water spots. After the soak, you can wash it normally. If the stains are "age" related, oxy clean or Clorox2 will then be the next line of denfese. But be sure to throughly rinse the piece if you soaked it in ammonia first. What I do is a soak, wash, repeat (sometimes) wash, rinse, rinse, rinse, then do what else needs to be done. The time honored approach to all this is rinse pieces as often as it takes so that you would drink the water. grin Depending upon your water supply, that might be ten times. Dianne Carolyn Wagner wrote: I recently received a stamped cross-stitch that my grandmother did many, many years ago (at least 40). It had been professionally framed under glass; however, she had been a very heavy smoker, and the protective covering on the back has been torn. I don't know if it was torn while it was hanging in her home or after my ex-SIL got it, but there are definite nicotine stains on the fabric. I would like to clean it and then reframe it in the original frame. Any ideas? Use the Oxy product? Will the threads be colorfast? This needlework is in pictures I have that were taken before I was born, so it is at least 38+ years old. Thanks for your help! Carolyn |
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On Fri, 14 Nov 2003 10:45:35 -0500, Carolyn Wagner wrote:
I recently received a stamped cross-stitch that my grandmother did many, many years ago (at least 40). It had been professionally framed under glass; however, she had been a very heavy smoker, and the protective covering on If you're willing to risk water damage (running dye, etc. [unlikely, but possible]), I'd try plain lukewarm water with a drop of detergent; soak and rinse, soak and rinse, until the water quits looking yucky. Then rinse (several more changes) in distilled water, block and dry. That's all I needed to do to get the cigarette smoke out of my great aunt's needlework -- I think it took perhaps 3 days soaking total and 10-15 changes of water. If the piece was fragile, I'd support it on nylon screening stretched over some sort of support -- given what I've got on hand, I'd probably make an oversize frame of 1/2" pvc pipe and lace the nylon (or fiberglas) screen to the frame. If the piece were something that I couldn't bear to see further damaged, I'd get in touch with a professional textile conservator. Kay Lancaster keeper of the family textiles... keepsakes, not museum pieces. |
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#6
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I recently received a stamped cross-stitch that my grandmother did many, many
years ago (at least 40). It had been professionally framed under glass; (snip) If you're willing to risk water damage (running dye, etc. [unlikely, but possible]), I'd try plain lukewarm water with a drop of detergent; (snip) If the piece were something that I couldn't bear to see further damaged, I'd get in touch with a professional textile conservator. (snip) Oh, c'mon, people. OK, it depends on the ground fabric, BUT.........I have a bunch of tablecloths and placemats hand embroidered in cotton floss on linen or cotton base. I got two dozen of these as wedding presents from various relatives and friends more than 30 years ago. I also have some even older which my mother passed down when she moved into a small place and stopped entertaining. About 15 years ago, I decided to use them every day. These things all go into the washing machine on a regular basis, and occasionally get a dose of bleach if they got red wine or something spilled on them. They are all still in good condition except for one which was fraying at the outer edges so I did a quick blanket stitch around the perimeter in order to keep on using it. In my house, a tablecloth rarely lasts more than 3 or 4 days without a messy spill (DH is good at slopping gravy!) so most of them get washed and ironed at least once every couple of months as they come into the rotation, and I haven't had any disasters yet. Olwyn Mary in New Orleans. |
#7
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Olwynmary wrote:
Oh, c'mon, people. OK, it depends on the ground fabric, BUT.........I have a bunch of tablecloths and placemats hand embroidered in cotton floss on linen or cotton base. I got two dozen of these as wedding presents from various relatives and friends more than 30 years ago. I also have some even older which my mother passed down when she moved into a small place and stopped entertaining. About 15 years ago, I decided to use them every day. These things all go into the washing machine on a regular basis, and occasionally get a dose of bleach if they got red wine or something spilled on them. They are all still in good condition except for one which was fraying at the outer edges so I did a quick blanket stitch around the perimeter in order to keep on using it. In my house, a tablecloth rarely lasts more than 3 or 4 days without a messy spill (DH is good at slopping gravy!) so most of them get washed and ironed at least once every couple of months as they come into the rotation, and I haven't had any disasters yet. Olwyn Mary in New Orleans. What a delightful, refreshing approach. As you note, it depends upon ground and threads. Don't try bleach with silk. grin I have a tablecloth that is cross stitched - 1940's - it is still going strong and has seen its days in bleach. It even has metallic thread which is just now beginning to frey . . . but hasn't lost its luster. A piece that has been behind glass for most of its life should be as fresh as new. And for "smoke" damage, you can't beat ammonia. I've even used that on silk, but not silk threads. Dianne |
#8
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Yup, I agree. Many of my embroidered pieces are a lot older than 30 years
annd I wash and iron them regularly with no ill effects. I use SA8 and LOC in my wash but that's a personal preference. I do my whole wash with them because they're bio-degradeable and neutral. "Olwynmary" wrote in message ... I recently received a stamped cross-stitch that my grandmother did many, many years ago (at least 40). It had been professionally framed under glass; (snip) If you're willing to risk water damage (running dye, etc. [unlikely, but possible]), I'd try plain lukewarm water with a drop of detergent; (snip) If the piece were something that I couldn't bear to see further damaged, I'd get in touch with a professional textile conservator. (snip) Oh, c'mon, people. OK, it depends on the ground fabric, BUT.........I have a bunch of tablecloths and placemats hand embroidered in cotton floss on linen or cotton base. I got two dozen of these as wedding presents from various relatives and friends more than 30 years ago. I also have some even older which my mother passed down when she moved into a small place and stopped entertaining. About 15 years ago, I decided to use them every day. These things all go into the washing machine on a regular basis, and occasionally get a dose of bleach if they got red wine or something spilled on them. They are all still in good condition except for one which was fraying at the outer edges so I did a quick blanket stitch around the perimeter in order to keep on using it. In my house, a tablecloth rarely lasts more than 3 or 4 days without a messy spill (DH is good at slopping gravy!) so most of them get washed and ironed at least once every couple of months as they come into the rotation, and I haven't had any disasters yet. Olwyn Mary in New Orleans. |
#9
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What a delightful, refreshing approach. As you note, it depends upon ground
and threads. (snip) Dianne I dunno about refreshing - I grew up in England and this is how my mother, all my adult female relatives and their friends handled these things. They were meant to be used!!!! I will admit that when I re-framed my great, great, great-grandmothers sampler (done in 1857 in wool on linen) and DH's great-grandmother's sampler done likewise but in 1846, I washed them carefully by hand in a quilt wash product, rolled them in towels, then pressed them, mounted and framed them, but washing did no harm and a great deal of good. BTW, I save all my old, worn out (and ripped) 100% cotton sheets, and use the good parts of them for mounting. I put two layers of this over the acid-free mounting board, lace it in the back, then lightly and gently baste the needlework to it. All I can say is - it works for me! Olwyn Mary in New Orleans. |
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