Curtains - Dry clean or wash them myself?

jodie114

thanks everyone - well i took the plunge and the first one is done and currently hung back up drying.. not sure about shrinking- guess they will have to dry to be able to tell that, but they are in one piece, hang nicely and smell sooooo much better!

maman

This may not apply to OP but unless curtains have been marked with spills etc I found that putting them on the line on a windy day gets rid of dust and gave them enough of a freshen up.

Generally I agree that 'Dry Clean Only' is widely used unnecessarily. I only ever dry clean things like heavy coats and lined jackets. Beyond that I try not to buy things with a 'Dry Clean Only' label if I can help it.

Catslovelycats

v helpful thread
I'm going to try cleaning my filthy cream curtains and if they shrink shall buy some material to make new ones tomorrow!!!

mavon

I have had curtains shrink at the dry cleaners .

lovethymini

Morning....help!

My son has splashed fruit smoothie on some "dry clean only" curtains. They'll probably cost about £15 - £20 to dry clean

The ones I have were from Next and are polycotton with a blackout lining made of polyester/acrylic mix. If they shorten a little bit that would be okay.

Has anyone else tried washing or spot cleaning some dry clean only curtains, and if so - how did they come out?

thanks in advance!

lovethymini

Morning....help!

My son has splashed fruit smoothie on some "dry clean only" curtains. They'll probably cost about £15 - £20 to dry clean

The ones I have were from Next and are polycotton with a blackout lining made of polyester/acrylic mix. If they shorten a little bit that would be okay.

Has anyone else tried washing or spot cleaning some dry clean only curtains, and if so - how did they come out?

thanks in advance!

(PS I have posted this in the "In My Home" section but I've had no replies as yet - so trying my luck here. Hoping to get the curtains cleaned today before the outlaws arrive!)

GlynD

I'd be inclined to use a proprietry stain remover on the parts which are affected first. See if the stain comes out. Washing them will be easy enough but the linings could separate and the nightmare of ironing them again would be unfair to you. It would be easier to take them to a dry cleaners if spot cleaning doesn't work.

jen1

No don't do it! I have shrunk my lovely expensive Next curtains on a hand wash programme. I really did think they would be ok, now I will have to buy new curtains.

tanith

I did and the curtains came out like dish rags they went in the bin and I was soooooo mad with myself.. I tried steaming and ironing them damp but nothing would get the creases out... and they shrank too. They actually felt like felt when they were dry... horrible

LittleBrownFrog

I'd wash them (but then I'll happily put pretty much anything in my washine machine).

Are the linings sewn in?

I'd just wash them, don't spin too fast, iron while damp.