Quilt Care

This is how I take care of my quilts. You may or may not agree and that's ok! This is what works for me and I thought some of you might like to see how I wash my quilts.

First I add a teaspoon {yes just a teaspoon!} of this awesome quilt detergent, "Quilt Care," I found on clearance long ago ($3 clearance, regular $11)  to the washer as it is filling up. Quilt Care is phosphate free, bleach free, and it's biodegradable too!

Just a teaspoon does the trick and it bubbles up nicely. I usually cold water for my quilts unless they are really dirty then I use lukewarm water still on the cooler side though.

Once the basin is about half full I add the quilt and make sure it is all submerged. I also add a  color catcher cloth to the washing machine at this point. The cloth acts as a magnet for loose dye. At the end of this cycle it had a pink tinge to it from the red fabric prints. Without the color catcher those loose dyes could have redeposited themselves elsewhere on the quilt, like on the backing fabric making the whites look pink instead of white.

I don't have a front loading machine and I don't have a nice laundromat nearby so I just use my top loading machine which happens to have a hand wash setting:

It is a very short cycle with intermittent low agitation and a low spin. It goes something like this: swish swish, pause, swish swish, pause... and it repeats. The pause is like a 15 second pause and the swish is very gentle.
Once the cycle is done I run the quilt through about 15 seconds of a high spin cycle. Then I throw the quilt in the dryer with a clean towel for 10-20 minutes on a low heat setting depending on the size of the quilt. You don't want the quilt to be completely dry but still damp.

Next I lay the quilt out on my bed to finish air drying. At this point you make sure your quilt is lying square as it will retain this shape once it is dry.

That's it! It may seem a little tedious but it is a step I truly enjoy! I love the smell of a fresh clean quilt. This step gives me one last chance to enjoy, pet, smooth, and caress that quilt before it leaves on it's way to it's future home. Taking good care of something you spent hours on truly makes sense to me. I want my quilts to be around long after I'm gone so my great great grand-kids can enjoy them someday.

Do you have any special quilt care tips for me?

~ Norma

Retro "big kid" Quilt & Quilt Care

I finished this quilt up yesterday. I had to wait until today to wash it and for some good lighting for pictures. I love the finished product! My favorite part is the red. The solid red squares and the inner border are made of super soft Ultra Suede. I can just see the suede squares becoming a favorite spot for little hands to rub.
The quilt is available in my shop, but only until November {because if it doesn't sell by then, I will be giving it to my son for Christmas.}






I know that everyone has their own way of taking care of quilts. I know there are a million do's and dont's that grandma's have. This is what I do and it works for me. Feel free to try it out!


WASH:

• I set my machine to the most delicate cycle available, in my case it's the "hand wash" cycle
• I use cold water for all of my quilts
• I like to use Baby ALL detergent

• I use a dye catcher I like Delta Carbona Dye Grabber. I use the one that is good for 30 loads. They are about $5 at the grocery store
• Once the wash cycle is done I run the "high spin" cycle (my "hand wash" cycle has a "low spin" which leaves too much water in the quilt.)

DRYING:

• I set my dryer to the lowest heat setting
• I add a "nice" dryer sheet
  
• I add a towel so that it will "tumble" better
• I only use the dryer for 10-15 minutes to get most of the moisture out
  
• I lay out my quilt on a clean bed to finish drying
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