Starch
10-19-2023, 04:51 PM
#1
Power Poster
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,581
Starch
Way back when - in the 1950's - my Mom would make a big bowl of starch that I think was Argo (navy blue and white box) starch, water, and Satina.
I am guessing the bowl held at least two gallons of starch - she dipped the item in it, wrung it out by hand or ran it through the wringer of the washing machine, and then the item was line dried.
When it was time to iron it, it was sprinkled, rolled up, and when it was evenly damp - usually the next day (if it did not go in the freezer!) , it was ironed.
It seems like dunking a large piece of fabric in a large bowl of starch would work well for large pieces of fabric - but I have not figured out what would be the equivalent of running the piece through a wringer.
I am guessing the bowl held at least two gallons of starch - she dipped the item in it, wrung it out by hand or ran it through the wringer of the washing machine, and then the item was line dried.
When it was time to iron it, it was sprinkled, rolled up, and when it was evenly damp - usually the next day (if it did not go in the freezer!) , it was ironed.
It seems like dunking a large piece of fabric in a large bowl of starch would work well for large pieces of fabric - but I have not figured out what would be the equivalent of running the piece through a wringer.
10-19-2023, 05:01 PM
#2
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Canada
Posts: 3,459
After I finish starching my fabric with good old cornstarch it goes in a
Ziploc bag and in the fridge overnight. When I take it out the following
day I let the excess starch drain in the sink and I put the fabric between
two towels. After one hour or two I take it to the iron (using a silicone
sheet so that I don't get my iron dirty). I know it's too complicated for
a lot of quilters but that's how I do it. My fabric stays nicely starched.
Ziploc bag and in the fridge overnight. When I take it out the following
day I let the excess starch drain in the sink and I put the fabric between
two towels. After one hour or two I take it to the iron (using a silicone
sheet so that I don't get my iron dirty). I know it's too complicated for
a lot of quilters but that's how I do it. My fabric stays nicely starched.
10-19-2023, 10:29 PM
#4
Super Member
Join Date: May 2012
Location: S.E. Queensland, Australia
Posts: 1,480
I have considered doing this, it would save time not having to cut pieces then starch. Don't have a wringer these days but I would peg fabric on the line not letting it dry out completely, then iron.
10-20-2023, 12:48 AM
#5
Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Michigan
Posts: 228
I mix up a gallon of Staflo and water, put some in a large spray bottle I bought at a home improvement store and use that to saturate my fabric (fat quarters or small pieces of yardage) and then hang them on the line to dry. If the weather is bad or it’s too cold out, I use a drying rack indoors. A gallon of Staflo is less than $5 at Walmart and I mix it 4:1 with distilled water.
10-20-2023, 01:08 AM
#6
Junior Member
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 131
After dunking in the starch- I wring it out & then take it to the clothesline or the dryer bars to dry. Then sprinkle or misty spray & let rest in a plastic bag for a few hours, then iron dry. Sometimes I will even just dunk & hang out to drip dry.
This is how my mom taught me & I must admit- it is at the wringing out stage that I wish for the old-fashioned wringer washer!! After the wringing out, my hands do really protest & ache, but I figure that it is the price of making my sewing easier.
Hope you find a solution that works for you.
sewverybusy
This is how my mom taught me & I must admit- it is at the wringing out stage that I wish for the old-fashioned wringer washer!! After the wringing out, my hands do really protest & ache, but I figure that it is the price of making my sewing easier.
Hope you find a solution that works for you.
sewverybusy
10-20-2023, 04:33 AM
#7
Super Member
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,559
I use Staflo and water, hang mine up inside on a rack. If I don't get to pressing it that day I put it in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. One night I was out with the girls, my husband was looking for the container of food I left him for dinner. He opened the bag with the fabric and thought I had lost my mind. He went to McDonalds, I laughed my head off when I got home.
10-20-2023, 05:42 AM
#9
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Carroll, Iowa
Posts: 3,446
I make up my starch using StaFlo liquid and a bit of Vodka though I doubt the Vodka does much as most you can find is made with something other than potatoes these days. Anyway, I put mine in a dishpan in the double sink. I found the top section of an old wringer washer, made a stand for it so it won't tip over. I put it in the center of the 2 sinks and dip the fabric in the dishpan, then run it thru the wringer into the other sink, then hang it up above the sink to dry. And yes, I mist spray it when I go to press it. Sure saves the hands when you're starching yards of fabric at a time. The wringer is now getting a bit heavy for me so I need to find another type of material to use for the stand, maybe PVC instead of wood. So far I've been using this method for the past 6-7 years and it's done me well. It's not a pretty gadget but works.
10-20-2023, 05:50 AM
#10
Power Poster
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Southern USA
Posts: 16,278
I have a bathroom with shower no one uses. I have a hanging rack in the shower stall to hang fabric after starching. The rack holds a lot of fabric. It could be hung about anywhere, takes up very little space. And it is pretty. Amazon $12
Skroad Stainless Steel Sock Drying Rack, Swivel Hook Wind Proof. Its perfect for fat quarters.
Skroad Stainless Steel Sock Drying Rack, Swivel Hook Wind Proof. Its perfect for fat quarters.
