Ebay- an adventure in clothing restoration

[dakotanorth]

I thought I'd share a bit of my current events just to keep things fresh and start a new thread of curiosity.
So, some of you may have seen an auction on Ebay that ended recently; a seller was selling a wholesale lot of men's shirts that were cleaned at the drycleaner, and then stored in an attic for 50+ years.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=380266018209&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT
I bought it.
No one bid on the auction, so the seller and I negotiated. Overall, with shipping, I think the shirts came out to $4 each.
Once I get these (they ship on Friday) I will try to post info, progress, and photos showing the results of my "Mad Scientist" experiments. I'll need to do a lot of research and forensic work to determine what is wrong with these, what's the best solution to fix them, and hopefully execute this well.
If I'm lucky I can save enough to wear a few myself, sell the others, and come out ahead.

 

[fluteplayer07]

Those are scary! I'm interested to see how this turns out.

 

[lci419]

One word..."Oxyclean"

 

[Qirrel]

Oxyclean is the answer.

 

[dakotanorth]

The password is....

Oxyclean?
I read online that ammonia will remove starch build-up.
Obviously the dilemma is this:
Is the stain really what you THINK it is?
If so, does "this" cleaner work correctly?
If it's not really that stain, what will this cleaner do to it?
Etc.
So yeah, an all-purpose cleaner is probably a safe starting point.
They shipped today; I'll post pics when they arrive!

 

[mattfink]

Oxyclean is the right way to go...it will take the stains right out!

 

[Guttersnipe]

I fourth the motion that Oxyclean is the solution. I actually had two 30's dress shirts in similar condition - deadstock/from the cleaners, but also yellowed and nasty - Oxy did the trick!

 

[mattfink]

My wife took a pair of cotton barkcloth curtains that looked like somebody had cleaned a pig pen with them and soaked them in Oxyclean...turns out they were off white with a nice atomic pattern on them. Didn't fade the colors at all.

 

[Qirrel]

Get out the starch first by boiling it or washing on highest temperature, then use the oxy-clean. It doesn't really matter what the stains are. That oxy stuff is brutal.

 

[pdxvintagette]

I fourth the motion that Oxyclean is the solution. I actually had two 30's dress shirts in similar condition - deadstock/from the cleaners, but also yellowed and nasty - Oxy did the trick!

That wasn't Oxy used on those shirts, it was Biz - they work the same way, but Biz is superior, and can be used on products with metals, where as Oxy can cause rust/oxidation and staining issues when used where any metal is present. I have had better luck with Biz - in fact, it has cleaned garments that Oxy failed me on.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

I'll tell you something: Whatever product you use, you will struggle with some of those shirts. I've tried with mixed success in the past, and that stuff is persistent! I passed over a pile of extremely interesting shirts on a market stall in New York because of my experiences with this kind of "deposit".

I'm sure some of our better and more experienced cleaners on the FLounge would have better luck than I. MissSis just managed to remove similar deposits from a 20s/30s white silk suit of mine, but it was apparently a bugger of a job to get it out.

bk