I've found that a great way to remove dust from my living room drapes is to just place them in the dryer with a dryer sheet and let them spin for five minutes or so. They come out of the dryer dust-free, wrinkle-free, and they smell great!
Lace curtains are best hand washed. If you must wash them in the machine use the gentlest setting. For stains or yellowing try vinegar or epsom salts. This is a page about cleaning lace curtains.
Overtime, as dust collects on white nylon curtains, they can become dingy. This is a page about cleaning sheer white nylon curtains.
Dry cleaning drapes can be quite expensive tempting you to consider machine washing them. This is a page about, "Can I machine wash dry clean only draperies?".
I have these curtains that I left out in the rain and they smell so bad. How do I get that musty smell out? I also have allergies. Please help. Thank you.
If you cannot wash the curtains, it will be very difficult to remove the mold. A dry cleaner may be able to help, for a fee, of course.
Please do not try to reclaim these. I know it's disappointing, but mold is dangerous and they really need to be discarded.
I have white curtains that I love. They have turned very dingy. How can I get them white again?
By Tina
I am assuming they are cotton? Wash and add some bleach or oxyclean in with your normal detergent. If you want them crisp, you can iron after and use starch.
Bleach or dry in the sun
This is a page about cleaning yellowed curtains. Window coverings can yellow with age and environmental conditions. It can be a challenge to restore the color.
Should I professionally steam cleaning drapes while they're hanging on the rods, or to take down to professionally dry clean?
By Sandi
I have a question about the machine for cleaning curtains. I'm looking for a special machine which is able to clean the fabrics right on the windows. It can be either for wet cleaning or chemical cleaning? Thanks for info.
Kratochvilova
How would I clean Martha Steward drawstring curtains without having to take them down?
I got a pair of old, silky feeling oriental curtains from my great grandmother about a week ago. I love them, the problem is they smell. I have washed them three times; using detergent the first, detergent and dish washing liquid (someone told me to try that) the second, and the third, letting them soak, then washing them in a mix of the detergent, dish soap, and half a bottle of fabreze. So far, nothing has worked, please help me with this.
Nervarah
Try soaking them overnight with a cup of vingar in the water. Drain and wash with reg. deterg.
You might try soaking them in vinegar & water. Vinegar takes lots of odors out.
Wash them in a mixture of (1/2 cup baking soda & 1/2 cup white vinegar). Soak them overnight in the washer...full of water with this mixture added.
I agree with the vinegar.... periodically DD leaves clothes in the washer for several days... and they smell... just wash with about a cup of vinegar and no more odors...
We have 4 inside dogs, so I keep a bowl of vinegar in different rooms of the house... no dog odors at all.. especially after rain and the dog smell is really bad..
you might try adding a cup of borax to the soaking water. it gets urine smell out of mattresses, so...also line dry in the sun on a breezy day.
Toss about a 1/2 cup to a full cup of baking soda into the washer when laundering, and add 1 cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle. Hang to dry in the fresh air. Also, try using Gain laundry detergent when you launder the curtains. It has a good reputation for even getting out the smell of smoke from house fires.
I never dry my curtains. I wash them in my washing machine on gentle cycle and then rehang them wet. They dry there well and they don't have to be ironed. By Robin
