A napkin is one of the most popular household items. Its various types are used for both applied and aesthetic purposes. Fabric ones can most often be seen during holiday feasts at home or in a restaurant. They are placed on your lap so as not to stain your clothes. Openwork, crocheted from threads, decorate tables, cabinets and other interior elements. Such napkins, both cloth and knitted, must not only be clean, but also keep their shape well. To ensure their appearance is impeccable, it is not enough to simply wash them. They need to be treated with a special compound or, as people say, starch.
How to do this using starch?
This is a simple and inexpensive remedy that our grandmothers and great-grandmothers used. With its help you can give shape to white fabric or openwork products. There are two ways to achieve the desired effect.
Cook jelly
The napkin can be given minimal, medium and high hardness. In the first case, the specified volume of liquid will require 1 tbsp. l. potato starch, in the second - 2, in the third - 3.
Necessary:
- boil 1 liter of water in a small saucepan;
- dilute starch in 0.5 tbsp. cold water;
- without waiting for the starch to settle to the bottom of the glass, pour the mixture into boiling water;
- Stir continuously until the jelly boils, then immediately remove from heat and cool.
The resulting composition needs to be soaked into the product and then dried properly, but more on that later.
By the way! Cloth napkins usually have less starch, since they wipe their hands on them, but openwork napkins have the maximum amount of starch.
Dry method
It is used when time is short. Product needed:
- wash;
- Place wet on a flat surface, placing a sheet of white paper of the appropriate size down;
- Sprinkle evenly with a thin layer of starch;
- spray from a spray bottle;
- wait a few minutes for the dry particles to dissolve and be absorbed;
- put another white sheet on top;
- iron gently.
Of course, you won’t be able to starch it too much, but the material will hold its shape.
By the way! If you have on hand not potato starch, but rice or corn starch, this option is also suitable. However, mixtures of them are less viscous, so the dose of the bulk product will need to be approximately doubled.
Other recipes
Starch is ideal for white, but it can leave streaks on bright and dark items. Fortunately, there are alternative active compounds that can also be used.
Sugar syrup
A product properly processed with it, provided there is no moisture, can retain its shape for up to several years. Thanks to its transparent consistency, it can be used for napkins of any color - it will not leave stains. However, for the result to meet expectations, the solution must be thick. To do this you will have to:
- pour 1 tbsp into an enamel bowl. hot water;
- pour 2 tbsp.Sahara;
- stir as much as possible;
- put the syrup on the fire and bring to a boil;
- as soon as the last grains dissolve, turn off the stove;
- After cooling, immerse the product in a container, squeeze lightly, straighten it and put it to dry.
Important! If the mixture is kept on fire for a long time, it will turn yellow and turn into a thick yellowish sticky mass. For the same reason, a napkin treated with syrup should not be ironed with a hot iron.
Gelatin
It will take at least an hour to prepare the mixture to the desired consistency. Sequencing:
- pour 1 tsp into ½ cup of lukewarm water. gelatin, mix;
- After about 30-40 minutes, when the grains swell, mix with another 1 tbsp. water in a suitable container;
- bring the mixture to a boil over low heat;
- remove from stove, cool;
- soak a napkin in the jelly and then lay it out to dry.
If you have time and desire, you can experiment and mix starch and sugar in different proportions for the compositions, add milk. You can even use a solution of PVA glue diluted 1:1 with water. However, if there are kids in the house who constantly put everything in their mouths, it is better to limit yourself to edible ingredients. It will be safer this way.
How to dry it properly?
Basic moments:
- This should be done on a horizontal plane, using, for example, a wide cutting board or other flat surface.
- Since the product will be wet after “bathing,” it should be placed on a cloth folded several times. If glue was used for impregnation, it is advisable to additionally place cling film under it.
- Difficulties may arise with crocheted items. Their pattern is usually intricate and includes many elements.They can bend, so you will have to work hard to straighten all the corners, petals and flowers. If necessary, pin each protruding area with a tailor's pin to the backing.
- The product should not be exposed to direct sunlight - ultraviolet radiation will warp it.
- Ensure good air circulation in the drying room.
A few more tips
There are subtleties that you should also be aware of:
- It is better to starch clean napkins. If they have just been washed, there is no need to dry them.
- The impregnation time of products in the solution depends on their thickness and the hardness that needs to be obtained. It can vary from 1 to 15 minutes.
- You can only iron napkins treated with starch-based paste, and preferably through several layers of gauze. In other cases, there is a risk of ruining a good thing, especially if the iron is hot.
- To starch a large volume of products at the same time, you will have to proportionally increase the amount of all ingredients.
- After adding a pinch of salt to the paste, the napkins treated with it will shine.
- Using milk instead of water, on the contrary, will give the products a matte finish.
- A crocheted napkin can be shaped into a vase. To do this, it should be dried on an inverted jar covered with polyethylene.
Fabric and openwork napkins create a feeling of comfort. Fabric ones can be decorated in a beautiful composition and decorate a festive table. Knitted ones will help not only hide minor defects in furniture, but also give the home a warmer atmosphere, and give the necessary ambience to a special occasion. Of course, it will take some effort to make everything look perfect, but the result is worth it.
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