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msmeow

Fabric shrinkage-reversible?

msmeow
11 years ago

Okay, my friends...is it possible to un-shrink fabric? (I'm pretty sure I know the answer!)

While making a modification to my quilting frame last weekend, my DH managed to poke his finger and bled on my leaders. I threw them in the wash along with the shorts he bled on, and of course they shrank.

They are made of pillow ticking and have the fuzzy side of Velcro along one edge and heavy duty plastic zippers inserted. Now the Velcro and zippers are buckling due to the shrinkage.

I tried ironing one of them, but it didn't seem to help much. Do y'all think steam pressing would help?

Donna

Comments (6)

  • littlehelen_gw
    11 years ago

    Well, I've never heard of un shrinking... Steam pressing I think is your best bet. Hope DH is healing! Good luck
    V.

  • mary_c_gw
    11 years ago

    Nope, you can't "unshrink" fabric. You can maybe stretch it out a little bit with steam ironing, but I doubt it.

    This is no help now, but I wouldn't have washed the leaders at all, though I might have dabbed at the blood stains with hydrogen peroxide. It's not like the blood was going to transfer to a quilt.

    Yes, my leaders have some blood drops on them - quite a few, as I'm pretty clumsy. I don't worry about them.

  • K8Orlando
    11 years ago

    I think it's worth a try to get it wet - really wet - and try to stretch it back to shape. I don't think a steam iron alone is going to do it and the heat would cause it to tighten up again anyway. Cool water, stretch, block and let dry.

  • magothyrivergirl
    11 years ago

    Peroxide is a miracle blood desolv-it ~ yes too late.
    I am guessing the pillow ticking shrunk alot and got terribly out of shape. I would not recommend re-using it. It is very important the leaders be close to perfectly square and straight as possible, or the quilt backing will get loaded skewed. I recommend making a new one. They also need to line up. You will love the dead bar if that's the modification you are making. It takes tweaking to get it right, but once you do - heaven! :)

  • msmeow
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Thanks, everyone. Marsha, I was planning to make a new set...these are really out of shape.

    Helen, he's fine. He doesn't even know what he poked his finger with! It was just one of those things that bled a lot.

    Whatever fabric I use I will either pre shrink it or plan to never, ever wash them! I'll remember the peroxide. :)

    Donna

  • mary_c_gw
    11 years ago

    I sympathize with the "bleed a lot" syndrome - DH bleeds if you just look cross-eyed at him, LOL.

    I'm glad you're going to make new leaders. It's far better than spending valuable time and energy to try to make the damaged ones work again. They will never be satisfactory again.

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