Wednesday 7 December 2016

WOW: Saving The Christmas Table Cloth

 WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays
Last year just before Christmas, I pulled out my favorite Christmas tablecloth. It's a stencilled tablecloth that is based around my quilt Red December. This quilt was released as a free Christmas project several years ago and I loved the motifs so much that I re-used them to create a similar matching pattern on my table. The idea was to hang Red December on my kitchen wall and enjoy this tablecloth on the table. Well, I just loved this tablecloth, but thought it was missing something. So last year I added a red trim. I did this in just under an hour, it was an easy project and it finished the tablecloth beautifully. 

Then, after lunch, I bundled it into the laundry and forgot about it until after the New Year. And after that, I just popped it into the machine without a second thought. I had planned to spot clean it. But you can guess what happened next - I didn't color test my red trim fabric because it was in the 'safe' stash and I was sure it would never run. And it did run, and now my tablecloth has a pink tinge to it. 

The fact that I have a colour testing tutorial on my sidebar is not lost on me - why don't I take my own advice?! I put it away earlier this year as I couldn't deal with my Christmas tablecloth disaster and had thoughts of simply re-making it. So today, I'm soaking it and trying to save it one last time. I'm using Synthrapol and hoping for the best. Just lately I've done this with several batches of my hand dyed stash and have been amazed at the colour run - especially as I did everything so meticulously during and after the dying process. It just goes to show, you can never be too careful. Hopefully from now on, I'll take my own advice. 
What's Your WOW?


6 comments:

  1. Oh, I am so sorry to hear this. The same thing happened to me with my Dear Jane "potholder" quilt. It actually ran due to high humidity in an air conditioned quilt show. I was so sick about it that I ignored it for weeks. Then I just threw it back in the washer with 7 color catchers and it all came out. I wish you the same luck! Merry Christmas.

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  2. Have you tried the Dylon colour run remover, I used it on a quilt last year with success, but I hadn't let the quilt dry , I left it soaking in the bath while I went to the shops, good luck with your cloth

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  3. I hope the soaking solution works for you!

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  4. Yes, we've all got our fingers crossed for you, Esther! Those runny reds are the worst!!

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  5. oh dear what a sad awful sickening story. I have had a couple of disasters - one with red trim on a crotcheted baby's outfit. I ended up pulling the red wool trim off and going again with boring pale blue. And I have a lovely wall hanging my SIL made me with red stitching. It got dusty after a few years to I washed it and the red thread in the stitching ran. I wasn't able to get the staining out but I still hang the wall hanging on my wall. I felt so awful that I had ruined my SIL's beautiful work. But its still gorgeous. Hope you have more luck than me

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  6. Just when we think we have it all figured out, we get in a hurry. Happens to everyone. May not make you feel better, but thanks for sharing. We all learn from you. Also let us know how it all turns out.

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