How to Launder your Rag Rug
Taking Care of Your Rag Rug — Laundry
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thanks to your submissions, a good question was brought up! 😃❤
Washing The Rug!
—links to all supplies needed are at the bottom of the post—
FIRST OFF! A Secret Weapon for the DIYer. A Super Weapon for Laundry. Whether you are washing in the machine or by hand, it is a must. Something i cant recommend enough?!
COLOR CATCHING SHEETS!! FOR FIRST-TIME WASHES, FEEL FREE TO USE A FEW SHEETS
the box will have directions and tips for best outcome
the 2 main brands, Shout & Carbona, are linked below. Carbona is my favorite one. i’ve used both and found it to out-perform Shout.
honestly, for the very first time, i would use just water (& probably color catching sheets) and no suds. whether by machine or by hand.
this is based on nothing other than my own personal fear of ruining the rug 😄 and the fact that my rug’s first wash was a total accident; it was left outside on the clean deck luckily, and a flash storm drenched it
Washing Your Rag Rug
How to Wash Your Rag Rug
Gently Care for Your Priceless Creation
HANDWASH
fill a tub or a large container (like a plastic storage box) with cold water
place color catching sheets in the wash tub (follow directions on box)
use delicate laundry soap (look for one that emphasizes color preservation)
gently agitate the rug in the soap & water. let it soak for as long as you need, or follow directions on detergent bottle. rinse thoroughly. soak again in just clean water. rinse again.
WASHING MACHINE
when in the washing machine, wash the rug by itself. cold water. run it on gentle, delicate, or hand wash cycle.
use delicate laundry detergent & color catching sheets.
one safe idea would be to put the rug in a laundry mesh bag made for delicates.
DRYING
gently squeeze much of the water out without warping the rug
after hand-squeezing it, one nice trick is to lay the rug on a towel, and roll the towel & rug into a “burrito.” the towel soaks up the water & squeezes the rug without warping it!
you can do this multiple times with a new dry towel to speed up the process
you can press on the rolled towel to get more water out
reshape & lay flat to dry inside or outside, OUT OF DIRECT SUNLIGHT.
i dried one outside, on our deck in the midst of the hot summer sun, and yes the sun majorly faded the rug—but the rug still looks great so 🤷♀️👍 (lol is this a truly indestructible project?!)
DRY CLEANING
If you want to try out at home dry cleaning! I am a laundry freak. Ever since this product came out, i have been obsessed & always have it on deck. I cant say enough about it, so before i go on forever; Woolite’s Dry Cleaning Dryer Sheets can take care of so much!
It is a great product for almost any DIY project, quilts, any variety of knits & crochets, clothing, and items around the house like throw pillows & stuffed animals! Its one of those “must-haves.”
A high trafficked, extra dirty rug might be too much for this product. But a rug that has mild to moderate dirt? A good shake of the rug before-hand should be just fine. If your rag rug isn’t too dirty, the dry clean sheets will work great.
GENERAL CONCLUSION
One site, a huge site, captured my cautious approach to washing a rug better than i did: to see the full version: SF GATE
Shake the dirt out of the rag rug.
Vacuum a large rag rug.
Spot Clean.
Wash small rag rugs in the washing machine on the gentle cycle. Hang to dry.
Clean the rug with dry-cleaning solution if you prefer not to machine-wash it.
COLOR CATCHING SHEETS WILL BE A LIFE SAVER FOR THOSE WITH VIVIDLY COLORED RUGS
Do you have any tips to add? Do you have any pics? I’d Love To See Your Magnificent Creations!!
Thank You As Always
LOVE ASH
