How to wash the embroidered work and what rules to adhere to. How to wash cross-stitch on plain and water-soluble canvas Can I wash cross-stitch on canvas

Often, large embroidered paintings have to be washed after completion of work. This is where the question arises, how to wash the embroidery with a cross so that no troubles happen to it - color changes or deformations. It is very a pity if the result of long and painstaking work is spoiled. In the case of using a water-soluble canvas patch, washing is mandatory, even if the product is not dirty.

How to wash off the finished work?

After embroidery is completed, you need to carefully inspect the finished work, paying attention not only to pollution, but also to its geometric parameters. Often, especially if a hoop has been used, the canvas can be skewed. This must be clarified before washing, as in this case it will be necessary to align the fabric, "pulling" it in the wet state.

Mandatory stages of embroidery processing:

  • soak;
  • washing;
  • drying;
  • alignment (if necessary);
  • ironing.

If everything is done correctly, the work after washing will remain in its original form.

Soak

To wash the embroidery without surprises, you need to choose the right detergent. It is advisable for these purposes to use those drugs that dissolve completely, without leaving grains in the water. At the same time, it is impractical to use gels or powders for white things, since they may contain aggressive components for whitening.

So what is suitable for soaking canvas?

  • Liquid products like Fairy (it is necessary to check if chlorine is present in the composition).
  • Gel for washing colored items.
  • Shampoos or liquid soap if they do not contain dye.
  • Laundry soap - traditional brown 72%.
  • Hand Wash Powder.


If laundry soap is used, it is necessary to prepare a solution from it:

  • Grate the soap on a coarse grater and pour into a saucepan.
  • Pour hot water (20 g of soap into 0.4 l of water) and heat until completely dissolved, stirring constantly.
  • Cool and dilute in the right amount of water.

The powder must also be pre-mixed in water and filtered. If this is not done, undissolved grains can cause spots on the light parts of the embroidery. Liquid products just need to be well mixed in warm water. Salt should be added to the water for soaking and washing - 1 tablespoon. This will prevent the appearance of plaque from trace elements contained in water, and will prevent the threads from shedding.

Water temperature should not exceed 40%. This temperature regime is preferable even in cases where the threads can withstand hotter heat treatment. This is due to the fact that on the canvas mainly organic pollution - sweat and particles of the epidermis from the fingertips, and they are best washed off at this temperature. After preparing the solution, the embroidery is soaked for 30-60 minutes, after which it can be washed.

If extraneous stains have appeared on the fabric - coffee has been spilled or other poorly washed dirt has formed, they must be treated before soaking with a small brush. The choice of product for this is individual and depends on the type of thread and stain.

Laundry and ironing

So that the embroidered work is completely cleaned, and the threads are not jammed, it must be washed very carefully. It is advisable not to rub the picture, this can only be done in places of severe pollution or stains. When rubbing, the threads fluff unevenly, and the embroidery appears untidy. Usually enough light compressive movements and movement of the picture in water (as when rinsing). If this is not enough, you can wash the embroidery with a soft brush: rub on the wrong side. The disadvantage of this method is manifested if there are poorly fixed ends: the threads begin to blossom.

Rinse is carried out in several waters. First, in warm (about 30 degrees), and when the water being poured out is completely clean, you can proceed to rinse in cold water. Here you can apply a little trick - acidify with vinegar. It is added at the rate of 1 dessert spoon per 3 liters of water. After this reception, the threads retain a bright color for a long time. It is impossible to twist the embroidery - it needs to be laid out on a light terry towel. When the fabric has become only a little wet, it can be ironed: put the face on a terry towel and iron it with an iron, making sure that the fabric does not skew.

How to wash embroidery on the patch canvas?

For cross-stitch, sometimes use false patch. It may be ordinary or water soluble. If a regular canvas is used, it is stretched before soaking and washed in the usual way. To do this, the embroidery is moistened to soften the hard threads of the canvas. Soaking is done using a spray gun, because if you lower the entire product into water, on the contrary, this will complicate the process of pulling the threads.

The water-soluble canvas is not pulled out, it completely disappears when soaked in hot water with a temperature of 50 degrees for 10 minutes. To work with such a canvas, you need to choose color-resistant threads, and before starting work, be sure to check their quality - embroider a small piece of fabric and wash in hot water.

If the work is already ready, and you are not sure about the quality of the material, you can wash in the following way.

  • Soak the embroidery in water (with the addition of salt) to 40 degrees for 30 minutes.
  • If after this the canvas has not dissolved, carefully stretch the picture in hotter water (up to 50 degrees).
  • Rinse as usual.

Little tricks

Some tips for washing embroidery on the canvas will help housewives not to spoil the result of many days of painstaking work.

  • Embroidery with metallic threads is not recommended to be washed. If such elements are provided for in the picture, it is better to embroider them after washing.
  • A steam generator is an excellent tool for ironing embroidery. Hot steam will help not only smooth the fabric, but also eliminate distortions. To do this, the picture is attached around the perimeter to a rigid base, suitable in size, steamed and left in this position for several days.
  • If a washable marker was used for the pattern, it must be washed off before soaking under cold running water. But not all marker models require such processing to completely remove traces. You need to find out all these nuances when buying.

Embroidery is a laborious task that requires time and skill. In order not to spoil the result of prolonged work during washing, adhere to the above recommendations. In this case, the embroidered work will please you and your loved ones for many years.

Dear friends, we received a lot of requests about how wash and iron embroidery. Some issues were discussed at our forum, but since some issues remained unlit, I decided to write about this in detail. Very often it is written on forums and books on cross-stitching that it is not necessary to wash the finished work if it is not contaminated. This position, in my opinion, is erroneous. Even if you wash your hands each time before sitting down at the embroidery and observe extreme cleanliness during work, still your hands contain natural oils that stain the work. In the long run, this can lead to fungal infections. Therefore, having spent a lot of time and effort on creating your own little miracle, be sure to wash the embroidery. After washing, the floss colors will become brighter, possible spots and hoop marks on the canvas disappear, and the crosses are leveled.

So let's get started. We have two jobs available. One is embroidered on a black canvas, with traces of markings and a hoop. Another work was in the hands of a small child: traces of a ballpoint pen and paints. For washing, we need a basin with water and mild detergents.

It is usually washed in cold or slightly warm water to prevent the floss from molting. If you used high-quality floss for embroidery, for example, DMC or Anchor, then you should not be afraid of molting if you follow the recommendations of the manufacturers. For washing, use any mild detergents: shampoos, dishwashing liquids, liquid powders. The main rule when choosing them is the complete absence of bleaches.

Pour water into the basin so that it completely covers the work, add a little detergent. We put embroidery in water and soak it for 10-30 minutes, depending on the degree of contamination. Then gently erase the embroidery with your hands, avoiding strong friction. The remaining spots can be cleaned with a toothbrush using a detergent, being careful not to damage either the mouline thread or the canvas. In my case, I soaked the first job for 10 minutes, the second for 30. Having a little rubbed the embroidery, the markings on the poppies immediately left. I had to work hard with the teddy bear: the traces of the ballpoint pen were removed quite quickly, but the gouache didn’t want to wash off. I had to gently wash the embroidery with anti-stain soap, it does not contain bleach, does not spoil the colors, and remarkably cleans complex dirt.

Rinse the work now. We rinse the embroidery in cold water, changing the water several times, until we make sure that there are no soaps in the threads and fabric. In the last rinse, add 1 teaspoon of vinegar to 1 liter of water in water to preserve the brightness of the threads and give them a special shine. We get the embroidery without squeezing it and lay it on a white towel, leveling out the possible folds, roll the towel into a roll and gently squeeze it. In no case do not wring or twist the embroidery, so as not to cause deformation of the pattern. If you have a lot of work that is difficult to put in a towel, hang it on a rope, leaving the water to drain.

We unwind the towel, leaving the embroidery face down, and let it dry a little, but not until it completely dries - the work should be a little damp. At this stage, carefully align and sip the embroidery to avoid skewing the fabric or pattern. To keep the embroidery embossed, iron it on a soft substrate (for example, a towel) face down, until the embroidery is completely dry. This must be done very carefully to avoid deformation of the picture. The optimum temperature of the iron depends on the composition of the canvas and mouline used and can be different, so you should focus on a lower temperature.

We look what happened after washing and ironing embroideries. All visible spots were removed, the crosses were leveled and the hoop marks were gone. Now embroideries are ready to frame them.

Cross-stitch always looks beautiful and stylish with skillful execution. However, in the course of work, it will inevitably lose its “salable” appearance. Many people ask: is it possible to wash the embroidery, and if so, how to do it right? Handwork of this kind requires a special attitude and care, and after its completion it is necessary to know how to properly wash the embroidery with a cross. Over time, so that the embroidery always looks like new, washing is also inevitable.

Rules for washing embroidery

How to wash the cross stitch? There are some simple rules. If you stick to them, the embroidered picture will please the eye for a long time.

To begin, fasten all the threads from the inside and make sure that they do not hang down and do not stick out. All extraneous threads, hairs, animal hair and other fibers adhered to the embroidery should be carefully removed with your hands, tweezers or a roller for delicate cleaning of the fabric.

Water for our washing should not be very hot - it will be enough 37-40˚С. Cross-stitching, caring for it, as well as washing require a delicate attitude, so we will wash it manually. Place your embroidery in a container of water in which you must pre-dissolve a small amount of washing powder for washing colored laundry. The powder solution should not be concentrated. Let the embroidery lie in the water for 15-20 minutes. If it has severe dirt or stains, you can rub them in advance with a soap-soaked sponge or soft brush. If there are creases from the embroidery frame on the embroidery, gently rub the fabric with the deformed sections against each other, but very carefully to avoid damage. After the embroidery has lain in water, gently wash it as usual. Do not rub the fabric hard or twist the embroidery to squeeze water out of it. After washing, rinse the work in warm, and then in cold clean water and place to dry on a clean terry towel. To quickly absorb excess moisture, you can twist the towel into the tube along with embroidery, without twisting or squeezing.

The mouline thread, which, as a rule, is embroidered with a cross, may not be of the best quality and when it is washed, start to molt. Then you need to rinse the embroidery until the paint stains are completely washed out. To preserve the color of embroidery, there is a small secret - a couple of tablespoons of vinegar, which must be added to the water before rinsing.

It remains only to stroke the washed embroidery. It’s better not to wait for it to dry completely, but to drain the water and iron it’s still wet from the inside.

If you follow the simple instructions for proper washing of cross-stitch, your work will delight you with its beauty and brightness for a long time.

  Despite the fact that needlewomen take all precautions during embroidery, the work may be accidentally dirty, so it must be washed. In addition, the water procedure will soften the thread, the stitches will gain additional volume, the hoop marks will become smoother, and the pattern will come to life. But before washing, you must once again carefully inspect the embroidery. If the long ends of the threads remain on the back, you need to cut them. Often needlewomen use an auxiliary removable canvas or make a marking with a simple seam - all these threads must be carefully pulled out.

Cross stitch wash

The main nuisance that can occur during the washing process of embroidery is the loss of thread color. Most often, blue and red shades are affected. Leading manufacturers of floss and wool offer really high-quality products and even indicate the temperature regime of water treatment on the label, but just in case, you should play it safe and use room temperature water and a mild detergent to wash your embroidery. In addition, it does not stand directly on the product, it should be pre-foamed in a container whose size is sufficient so that the canvas is not folded several times.

The experienced needlewomen prefer to wash the embroidery only by hand, and shampoo for normal hair is chosen as the detergent. However, modern machines can be programmed for delicate mode (as, for example, for silk) and turn off the spin. In this case, you can be sure that fixing the stone on your favorite ring does not accidentally hook the cross on the canvas and does not stretch it. If, after hand washing, it is noticeable that the water has colored in any color, it is better to immediately remove the embroidery from it and rinse thoroughly so that the other shades do not change their color. In no case do not wring the fabric, this will entail deformation of the material and individual stitches, the pattern may skew or “float”.

How to dry and iron embroidery

After the embroidery is slightly wet and allowed to drain excess water, it must be carefully laid out on a flat surface. Do not dry the canvas on an artificial heat source - it can shrink, moreover, unevenly. When the embroidery has dried, it must be placed face down on a soft cloth (a terry towel is ideal) and ironed with a not too hot iron. If ironed on a hard surface, the crosses will become flat, and so the stitches will keep the volume and convex shape.

Often in the process of embroidery on the fabric appear pollution, which make the work untidy. If the embroidery is not washed correctly, the picture will be damaged: the threads may shed, the fabric may become deformed or even torn.

How to wash the cross stitch on the canvas?

Basic Rules

   The main thing is the temperature of the water. Water should not be too warm, otherwise the threads, even expensive brands, can shed.

It is better if the embroidery is washed at a temperature of about 30 degrees, just above room temperature.

Thoroughly dissolve in washing water. It is advisable to use a quality product that is designed for washing colored items in cold water. A lot of powder should not be used.

   For a while, we lower the embroidery into the water, the capacity should be quite large. Leave the canvas to soak in water, and then gently rinse it in the solution. It is important to remember that you can’t rub or squeeze the work, it will go bad! The most polluted embroidery spots can be patted lightly.

Then you need to rinse the canvas with embroidery thoroughly, there should not be any traces of powder on it.

Then we put the washed canvas on a clean light terry towel, previously laid out on the table. Hanging embroidery and especially not use clothespins.

After the canvas is half dry, you can begin to iron the work, this must be done necessarily from the inside.

Some needlewomen practice washing the canvas with embroidery in shampoo, but in this case you will have to be guided by the method of trial and error, and also remember that you can not use colored shampoos.

If a special washable marker was used for marking during embroidery, its traces are removed in cold water. Soaking up to 1 hour may be required.

Wool embroidery

You should know that woolen threads sit down during washing.

Therefore, before carrying the embroidery to the bathroom, it will be useful to find out how to properly wash the cross-stitch made with woolen threads.

In this case, it is even more important to monitor the temperature of the water: it should be cool.

For washing embroidery with woolen threads, you should use a special washing powder designed for woolen products. Then you can use.

   Dry the washed work also on a towel, but iron after drying completely. Embroidery should be placed on a relatively soft substrate and ironed without steam; the iron cannot be pressed strongly against the fabric.

Beads

The needlewomen are even more questioned by the question of how to wash combined embroidery with a cross and beads.

Unfortunately, even expensive beads often fade during washing, while a cheap one can completely disappear, staining the fabric.

The best option in this case would be this sequence:

  • we embroider only with threads, wash the work, dry, iron;
  • embroider with beads and without washing iron the canvas on a soft substrate.
If the embroidery using beads is still dirty, it remains only to try very carefully to partially clean it with a toothbrush soaked in soapy water.

Perhaps you can figure out all the nuances with a video with tips from an experienced needlewoman on how to wash and dry cross stitch.