# No oxygen bleach for linen



## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

Just discovered all bleaches, even oxygen, weakens linen, and of course I already ran my linen tablecloths from the holidays through the Oxyclean treatment, along with the cotton ones. Drat! I didn't think cotton and linen were that different. And, there was nothing on the label about it.

I'd love to hear how folks take care of their linen table cloths and napkins. And how you get stains out of vintage stuff. I did find that hanging in the sun helped fade some, but that's not so great for fabric either.

Thoughts, anyone?


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## ChickenMiss (Jan 21, 2012)

I've heard that you can use lemon juice and then set in the sun but I imagine that may not be the best for vintage things. Perhaps someone else will come along who has more experience with this.


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## Mulish (Mar 24, 2005)

I have had decent results getting stains out of linen by hanging them in freezing weather, or freezing then thawing in your freezer. It sometimes takes quite a few repetitions, but has worked well for me


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## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

Mulish said:


> I have had decent results getting stains out of linen by hanging them in freezing weather, or freezing then thawing in your freezer. It sometimes takes quite a few repetitions, but has worked well for me


Never would have tried that one! I wonder if you packed your tablecloth straight to the freezer after dinner, might it be a step ahead?


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## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

Sorry, I realize this is really late, but just saw this post. I don't know if it would still be safe on today's fabrics, but my grandma taught me on her vintage linens to wash by hand in a gentle soap (she used Ivory, but Dreft or maybe Woolite would also work) and barely warm water. She did it in a dish pan in the kitchen sink. Just let it soak for a while, kind of swishing it around once in a while (never scrub), squish out water gently without twisting, rinse the same way and then line dry.

For bad stains, before washing as above, she'd roll a lemon in her hands until it was slightly soft (said it loosened up the juice more), cut it in half, dip a half in table salt and very lightly rub in a circular pattern. Rinse in cold water and see if it's gone or repeat if necessary. Rinse with cold water to remove the lemon juice and salt, then wash as above. Hope this helps!


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## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

Appreciate your tips - I was using pretty warm water too, so I'll back off on that! I have heard before that cotton is stronger when wet, but rayon is weaker. I wonder if linen is weaker when wet?


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