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  • Looking for clothing advice

    The other evening, I got the sudden urge to clean. This is a very rare occurrence, because I do not like to clean one bit. Okay, I like when everything is clean, but I don't like the process of doing it.

    I cleaned out the wardrobe. I went through all of my clothing and threw things aside that were not going back in the wardrobe. Some needed to be washed; some needed renovation; some needed to be given away. It's not been an easy process, because some of the things that I don't wear, and haven't worn in some time, were given to me by my mother, and it's still hard to let go of them. But I think it's time.

    Some are items I would like to keep. One is a long-sleeved silk shirt that will have to be turned into a short-sleeved silk shirt, because one of the sleeves tore unexpectedly at the elbow one day when I was at work, which was highly embarrassing. Another is also a long-sleeved silk shirt, which has a lighter stain (the shirt is purple) one one sleeve. A third is a long-sleeved silk shirt which I made the mistake of trying to clean with Nature's Miracle, and it left lighter patches in the underarm area.

    How easy is it to turn a shirt into, say, a tanktop? I have another shirt that I like very much, but it's too small on me now (especially since I started doing yoga regularly and built up the upper arms). Can it, somehow, be redone?

  • #2
    Note that silk is one of the most difficult fabrics to get stains out of, not because it holds them too well, but because it's hard to get dyes to stick - as you found out the hard way, removing the stain frequently takes out the dye.

    I'd suggest dealing with the "needs to become short-sleeved" shirt BEFORE doing anything to the ones whose only problems are stains/bleaching. That way, you'll have "leftover" fabric to experiment with.

    If you know what caused the stain, try creating a similar stain on the cut-off torn sleeve. Next try using a colour remover (I believe Rit makes one) to get rid of both the stain and the dye, then re-dye. If the results look good, you can then try the process on the stained shirt.

    The "bleached-out underarms" shirt sounds easier - again with a scrap, try to create a bleached spot using Nature's Miracle, then dye it the original colour. If you get a uniform colour, you won't need to use the colour remover on this one. If not, go with the colour remover and re-dye.
    Any fool can piss on the floor. It takes a talented SC to shit on the ceiling.

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    • #3
      A friend who likes to sew is going to give it her best shot.

      Some of the stains are oil-based (homemade deodorant gone wrong), and no matter what I have used, they are still there. These shirts will just have to go.

      Thanks for the advice!

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      • #4
        Not necessarily. They can be remade or embellished to conceal or simply remove the damaged fabric, or they can be bleached and redyed.

        Wait till after the bleaching to choose the colour. Hopefully the bleaching is even, if not, consider doing a dip-dye or tie-dye style of dying. Dye it in a darker colour than the darkest colour, and ideally in a shade of the colour it's bleached out to; or a colour in a related colour family.

        To remake them, consider something like adding raglan sleeves in a contrasting colour, or a matching colour and contrasting fabric: depending on what you can get. The raglan sleeve will mean that you can get rid of the stained armpits, and the contrasting colour and/or fabric will make it look like the mismatch is deliberate. (I'm assuming you won't be able to get an exact match.)

        Embellishment is harder for the armpit than most other places. Ribbons or embroidery or lace can be applied almost anywhere else; but I can't think, offhand, of anything to do with the armpit.
        Seshat's self-help guide:
        1. Would you rather be right, or get the result you want?
        2. If you're consistently getting results you don't want, change what you do.
        3. Deal with the situation you have now, however it occurred.
        4. Accept the consequences of your decisions.

        "All I want is a pretty girl, a decent meal, and the right to shoot lightning at fools." - Anders, Dragon Age.

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