Dirty Floss

[megatonabomb]

Hi, I'm new here, and I just purchased some DMC floss from ebay that came from an estate sale, so it is a bit dirty and therefore discolored. Is there a way to wash the entire skein before I use it or should i just stitch like normal and wash it in the end? I searched the forum and found plenty on how to wash it when I'm done, but nothing about acquiring dirty floss. Any help is very much appreciated!

[pinkcatflower]

Hey, I'm no expert but I would probably take a sample of the floss and give it a wash and see how that turns out before incorporating it into a project. YOu wouldn't want to have a nasty surprise after working so hard on it right?
I think applying the instructions on how to wash a completed work would apply easily to just washing floss Good luck!

[Slipstreamed]

Is it dusty or actually discolored? If it's from an estate sale, I imagine its just very old and has faded due to light and age. As far as I know this isn't fixable. But definitely give it a wash to see what happens!

[megatonabomb]

Is it dusty or actually discolored? If it's from an estate sale, I imagine its just very old and has faded due to light and age. As far as I know this isn't fixable. But definitely give it a wash to see what happens!

It has visible dirty areas as far as I can tell, here's a close up pic to show you what I mean. The seller didn't have it listed as an estate sale floss supply and their pics made it look a lot better, so I'm a bit annoyed, but that's what I get for not asking I guess.

dirty floss

100_0500.jpg (139.69 KiB) Viewed 3631 times

[blackmageheart]

I don't have any experience in this particular sort of situation, but if it's 100% cotton it should be fine to wash.
Stick it in some water (temp 40 - 50 C) with a gentle detergent (I use one for cottons, wools and delicates - which is what I clean my finished stitchings with) and carefully clean it. Then rinse and let it dry naturally.

I'm not sure if that really helps, but I hope it did

[megatonabomb]

Thanks for the replies everyone, it's much more helpful than the knowledge I have on this >.<

They are DMC floss, so I'm hoping it will just come out with washing. Again, thanks all

[Slipstreamed]

Good luck!

[kuja.girl]

DMC floss does not (noticeably) bleed when washed. You might want to hand wash a few in cold water with a tiny amount of detergent to see if it is discolored or just dirty.

I think that if it's just a little dirty it's fine to stitch with it and wash it afterwards as long as it is not sticky - that way it's not rubbing off onto other thread...
If it's discolored you'll have to decide if it's worth keeping... usually a small amount of discoloration is not noticeable.

[Kareesh]

Just think of it this way, if it is discoloured, then you have cheap variegated floss!

Anyways, hope it all works out for you.