Anyone here good with washing plushies?

[MimzMum]

I just put one of my bunny plush in the wash because it had stains on the back. It was wonderfully soft before I washed it, but our water here is so horrifically hard that now it’s all nappy and the inner stuffing is all bunched up. I am so hacked off at myself, I should’ve just spot cleaned it, but…too late now….

I know to put plushies in a pillowcase for washing and to only tumble dry them on low if at all (I have to brush mine dry), but is there anything else I can do to soften the ones I have washed that come out all bunched up like this? It really disgusts me when I screw up a stuffy this bad.

Thankies in advance!

[Deleted User]

Our water is pretty good … I just throw mine in … oh dear sorry to hear about your plushies … I generally don’t bother putting mine in a wash bag either.  Maybe some of the other bunny lovers may have some ideas.

[jerseygirl]

Often it’s a combo of hard water and too much detergent residue left that leaves things all crunchy.

Give this a go: In the wash, use only 1/2 as much detergent as what is suggested. (You could skip this altogether if your re washing the plushie). Add 1/2 bicarb soda along with the detergent. In the fabric conditioner slot – if you have one – add 1/2 cup of……..MM, Gods honest truth I’m not pulling your leg….add 1/2 cup of that sour, clear stuff that starts with “V” and ends in “gar”. Guess you could just pop it in the rinse water. It’ll strip out excess detergent.

Try reshape the plushie after washing. Pull at bits like your playing a piano accordian! Let it mostly dry naturally then finish off in dryer. If no tumble dryer – can you use neighbours of community one? The tumble action is great to get the shape back, they may even come out  looking more puffy! No more flat bunny! Also, even though it may be near dry before you tumble them, perhaps give the covering a light spray of water before putting in the dryer (???)

[bunnytowne]

Hmm sounds like you don’t have to taste test the vinegar here.  Just throw it in the wash.

Sounds like good advice. I was going to suggest fabric softener.

[MimzMum]

Sounds good. ^_^ I’ll give these suggestions a try, thank you!

I also find that using one of those little wire pet brushes tends to help lift the compressed faux fur on stuffed animals even after they’re dry, but if you brush too hard you pull fabric apart and the fur comes out. 0_o Doesn’t look so good after that. >.<
I also tried using some lay down spray that I use to keep my hair from getting frizzy in the low humidity, but that didn’t help much.

I learned about bagging stuffed animals for the wash too late. My daughter’s favorite plush for most of her life, oddly enough, was a little Gund dog that went through the dryer without the pillowcase and got all fried. The hair was like melted plastic in some spots, but she loved that thing. It’s in a cabinet now for safekeeping because if she were to even touch it the fur will fall out.

Yeah the sad thing was the bunny just wasn’t as uniform coming out as it was going in. Feels just a bit stiff and not as fluffy. You can tell the stuffing is bunched up in places it wasn’t before. But it’s not burned, I think you’re right jerseygirl, I must’ve used too much detergent. You’d think after all these years I’d learn not to do that. ~_~

Ah well. Not like I don’t have a bazillion of these things. This one was just so incredibly comfy to use as a pillow and it looked so real too.

[jerseygirl]

Oops! That’s was 1/2 CUP bicarb and 1/2 cup of V——. I think the manufacturers of the detergent deliberately put generous proportions in the instructions so we go through it quicker and have to buy more! We’re onto them!

[MimzMum]

Oh yes, and don’t you love how they now “concentrate” detergent so you (supposedly) use less and don’t harm the environment? Phooey! >.<
I wind up paying more for less soap and using too much of it to do the same job as before. Yah, that’s economical all right! ;P

Now I’m thinking back to my science classes in junior high…didn’t soda (that’s baking soda-bicarb…right?) and vinegar make some frothy, explosive material? 0_o Or am I thinking hydrochloric acid and seashells?
I can still see our teacher warning us not to put nitric acid in a syringe and shoot it at our classmates. There’s a big, painful DUH! >_<

[jerseygirl]

Yep, bicarb soda is baking soda and YES, put vinegar and it together and it makes big frothy mess. We used to make volcano models and tint the vinegar red.  You’d pour it down the hole onto the bicarb and voila!  Lava (pink lava!)  The concoction makes a good environmentally friendly cleaner actually. You won’t mix them when washing thou so no worries there. It’s like cheapo version of fabric softner without all the perfumes.

Hey, hydrochloric acid and seashells ??? – cool!

[MimzMum]

Yeah, you would squirt a little acid on the seashells and they would froth up and make this awful smell like rotten eggs. >.< But I loved doing those experiments because they were just so cool. ^_^ Seems these days I'm still doing them…lolz. *puckers lips*

Okay so I wash the plush with the baking soda, but I don’t put the vinegar in with it, just add it to the rinse cycle? Okay, I’m confused. I want to make sure I do this right because I don’t want to wash this poor plushie more than once again. ^_^

[jerseygirl]

Since you’ve already washed it, maybe just pop it in a bucket or sink with 1-2 Tablespoon of bicarb and some detergent (optional!) then rinse in another bucket with 1-2 Tablespoon of vinegar. Then just spin it out. I don’t use fabric conditioner slot in machine so I don’t know when this is usually added to the wash. I assume it is during the rinse cycle. Hope this works – i’m feeling responsible for good outcome now!

You know if you chucked back some bicarb when you swilled the vinegar, you would have got a great teeth clean!  Admittedly, you may also have gotten froth coming out of your nose!

[MimzMum]

Oh ewwww! >_< I can just see that too! OMG, that would've been an even better wake up call! LMAO! Hey I could do that and go as a case of rabies for Halloween, huh? lolz…

And please, don’t feel responsible. I’ll give this method a try, hey can’t hurt the plushie any worse than I’ve already done, eh? ^_^

[Scarlet_Rose]

Mimz – for the matted “fur” use a stiff baby brush. I’ve had to do that a time or two and the accordian method works well for the stuffing. One case where it did not work for me, I ended up ripping a seam open, taking it out and re-stuffing with new material.

[jerseygirl]

Ha Scarlet! Glad you understood what the accordian reference was! MM, have you attempted to revive plushie yet? Just curious…

[MimzMum]

No not yet. Just found that my son was stashing about 7/8 of his clothes in his room in one corner and I’ve been desperately trying to get those done first so he’s not running around in the same tee shirt and fleece for the next two weeks. His socks are going to have to walk into the washing machine by themselves. (And they probably COULD too….PHEW!) >.<

Yes, I tried the accordion thing when I first washed the bunny, and it worked okay except for one hock which is all punched in-like when you suck the air out of a plastic bottle and it caves at the rounded corners, but you can tell the stuffing is still bunched up inside and so I am probably going to have to re-stuff it. Any particular brand you would recommend, Rose?

I think I have just the brush to work out the crinkled fluff with. It’s one the bunnies never liked, even though it’s semi-soft bristled.

[Scarlet_Rose]

Ha kate! I used part of your quote earlier in another thread, I hope you don’t mind! I LOVE IT! Oh yes I’ve done the accordian thing with many stuffed animals.

Mimz – For stuffing I just used whatever they had on sale at the fabric store. There was one particular kind that was very spiral in texture and worked great.

[jerseygirl]

Course I don’t mind!

[MimzMum]

Just a quick update, Kate, I used the formula successfully! The plush is still not quite as uniform as when I got it, but it’s much softer now and so are three other bunnies whom I just washed with it, (and no, I don’t mean Mim, Pip and Fiver, lolz!)
Thank you! ^_^

[jerseygirl]

LOL!  Good to hear!  Should I admit now that I’ve never actually used the formula before?  No?  Okay then.

Seriously, I new it’d be ok for the plushies!

[MimzMum]

Well it sure worked, thank you! And I’ll use it from now on.

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