Random bedding, linens, and fabric tips that I would like to share.

In my brief stints of dilly-dallying around with my linens and bedding and spending ALL. AFTERNOON. AND. EVENING. YESTERDAY. after church washing, and drying, and folding, and ironing, bed linens etc., I thought it was about time I share some tips that I think would be potentially quite useful for anyone that does the little things I do.

1. Fold quilts inside out when storing. Remember those baby quilts I bought and showed a few posts ago?? Here's what I noticed, and learned. The fabric and threads get all stretched out when you fold them. On the inside, thin and brittle fabric can just totally split like it was cut with scissors if you fold it like that. And on the outside, it's stretched out so when you unfold it, it's slightly raised and sticks out. Especially after years and years and years. No good!! The ones I have have noticeable folds where you can see how it was folded. I suppose ideally you would gently roll the quilts and store them that way. Currently, mine are folded inside out. It'll minimize sun damage and fading and potential random spills on the pretty side, and the less important side can take the stretching outing.

2. It's a pretty cool idea to iron flat linens RIGHT after they are washed, instead of even putting them in the dryer. Dunno why I never heard of this before. That's IF you bother ironing at all, which I don't often do, but like doing with the bedding so it's nice and flat and stiff and crisp. I THINK I thought of this myself, but I am certain I wouldn't be the first person to think of it. I just wondered why I would hang things up to dry, or throw them in the dryer, and THEN try to iron out the wrinkles that have basically already been set. This is ideal to do with pillowcases, and flat sheets ... though that GIANT king-size pink Nautica flat sheet took way too freaking long to do. It would work really nicely with handkerchiefs, and napkins, and tablecloths too, probably. Just unroll or unfold, and stretch and pull the fabric out a bit before you iron, and you don't have to use the steam function (it's already damp!) and you dry and iron out wrinkles AT THE SAME TIME. Whoo. This worked wonderfully with an embroidered and cut-out pillowcase that had shrunken a bit within the embroidered part so the pillowcase was all warped at the end there. Now it is nice and flat and smooth! I also try (if I remember) to gently straighten and finger-iron wet clothes from the washer when I hang them up the dry. How you hang them up is how they dry all stiffish-like, so save yourself the extra ironing step and do it while it's wet!!

3. Featherbeds can sometimes suck. My king size Woolrich one that I got for 75% off at Target ($17.48!!) is on the bed and the feathers are sticking out EVERYWHERE. Horrible. I know it's just that the weave on the cover is probably not fine enough, but feathers also get all flattened in the middle where the big ole body lays so you end up sleeping in a ditch, basically. If the feathers pile up around the outside enough, it's almost like a grave. Ick.

4. Old, garish, yet serviceable comforters make awesome mattress toppers. So, Target sells "mattress toppers" - basically like the foam toppers, or feather toppers, or down-free toppers, etc. They basically provide more cushion atop the mattress/bed. (I swear the next mattress I get is going to be a Tempur-pedic, though. Cousin got one AND I LOVE IT!) I love myself a firm mattress so I never thought I needed one, but I reaaaaaally wanted to sleep on feathers and try it and I kinda did not totally care for it. So then I got a cute Tommy Hilfiger reversible Hawaiian print comforter for $7 at the thrift store. And I folded it in half and used it on the bed and it totally kept the feathers from poking out through the sheet into me!! Just now I remembered that I forgot to put the gorgeous VELOUR (fuzzy, and soft like velvet!) mattress cover on ... but last night I fixed up the feather mattress, and threw the comforter over it for extra padding, AND THEN put on the Woolrich down-free comforter on top of THAT before I put the sheets on. And this bed is now like sinking into a cloud. A flower-covered, Laura Ashley/Rachel Ashewell cloud.

5. Shower curtains make perfectly acceptable and serviceable curtains for the bedroom windows. My little apartment has drapery pull hardware so it already comes with the kind of hooks that pin into the drapes. I just used shower curtain hooks and shower curtains and what with the collection I have, I can change the curtains however often I want. Also, it is MUCH MUCH MUCH cheaper to buy the shower curtain in RACHEL ASHWELL BRITISH ROSE FABRIC than it is to buy the window panels. $60, for 2, on eBay? People are craaaaaaaazyyyyyyyyyy.