I have been given a very large linen tablecloth on which a cutwork design has been printed in blue. It was to be had enbroidered. I want to remove all this blue design and do my own Machine embroidery design, but so far I have been unsuccessful in remove the ink. I have tried bleach, color remover, Zout etc, and nothing works. The design is from Paragon, so I tried to contact Paragon with no success either. This item was purchased a long time ago by a lady who intended at one time to embroider it, but like many of us, she had too many projects, and had a stroke that has left her very paralyzed and no one is sure if she will make it.
Does anyone have any idea on how to remove this very resistant ink? I would be very grateful. It’s beautiful fabric and I would have a souvenir.
Thanks,
AB
Replies
Have you tried Oxyclean?
I was given a quilt kit in the early 70s. It was a whole cloth with marked applique and quilting lines. Thirty years later I completed the quilt, but the blue dots remain. O well.
Meg
This is a really strange suggestion...but...have you tried whitening toothpaste? I don't think it would work completely in one usage but I think it might fade the ink at least partially. I've found that if I accidentally drop any whitening toothpaste on any of my clothes it removes the color. This has happened with jeans, t-shirts, etc. Yeah, I know, apparently I'm a clumsy slob but maybe my unfortunate discovery might help you.
JT
I have not tried that yet, so what do I have to losse? If it doesn't work on the tablecloth, I might have the brightest teeth in town. Thanks so much I like that.
Amazing all the good suggestions one gets, just by asking a question.
AB
Well, if it doesn't work, at least you will have gotten white teeth and a laugh out of it - as well as a minty fresh smelling table cloth!
I got to even out the faded spot on one of my favorite t-shirts by making a paste by adding a little bit of water to the toothpaste and smearing it all over the rest of the front of the t-shirt. It worked. I don't have much doubt that if I had wanted to lighten the shirt considerably more I could have done this several times leaving it on there for a while and fading the color to almost nothing. But dyes are all different so it may or may not work on your table cloth. Let us know if you do find something that works, ok?
JT
On second thought, I 'm not sure that I would want my teeth that white, it might peel off my gums!!!
This blue ink is kind of like the fat on my hips...no matter how hard I work out, there always some that stay LOL..
AB
It's really too bad they don't dye blue jeans with that ink or I would never have discovered the bleaching power of toothpaste accidentally dribbled on denim in the first place!
JT
This idea is so simple, I'm sure you've thought of it: can the fabric be turned over so the blue is on the underside? Also, I read once that museums use hydrogen peroxide to remove spots from heirloom garments. Don't give up! Galey
You are so right! Nothing better for getting out blood stains as I learned in nursing school. Wish I had known that when I ran my sewing machine needle through the side of my finger and "ruined" a project...by over bleaching, lol
Does the design show through to the other side? Maybe you can turn the cloth over. If it has a definite hem you will need to redo that, but many cloths are finished with a serged or satin stitched edge that has no real right side.
You tried chlorine bleach? You might get better results with a bleach pen. Just be careful to wash it right away, because bleach deteriorates fabric. Try a small area first before attacking the entire thing.
Thanks for this suggestion too, I have tried bleach, bleach pen, color remover...nothing works well, it has faded a little but not enough, and I am afraid that if I keep it up I might end up with a lace tablecloth!
AB
I would take it to a reliable dry cleaners and ask them. Maybe one that cleans and packages wedding dresses would be more experienced with heirlooms like this.
Could you applique over the area or do free motion embroidery over it?
Thanks for that suggestion,I have not thought of taking it to the cleaners...I might have to do that, even though it has been washed so many times. I was trying to stay away from free motion embroidery, because the design now printed is so big and complex that it would be as much work as to do the ocutwork.
Have you tried Oxyclean? My daughter-in-law tried it on an old stained delicate tablecloth and it worked.
Thanks, but I just bought some of that and tried it...no success. This Blue ink is really good!!!
AB
Hi , you should try Goof Off , it takes off ink. it also removed some dry paint from a shade . I found it at Home Depot.Good luck
If life gives you lemons,.... If you like the design but don't want to do all the cutwork, you could use a selection of fabric pens and paints to finish it instead. Just about anything that takes out a permanent dye is likely to ruin the base fabric, but if you complete it with pens and paints, you can use it and enjoy it.
Although I prefer stitched to painted items, fabric paints have helped me salvage many garments. Nowadays, there are many, many lovely combinations of colors, tints, shades, metallics, and mattes that can be combined to create very artistic effects with very little effort.
As in if life gives you lemons make lemonade? or have tequilla shooters? or stuff your bra with them?......
I like if your life is in pieces, make a quilt
or families are like quilts, pieces stitches togeather with love
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