(Thu 17:56 03/Nov/05)Don't - get them dry cleaned, or you risk ruining them.
Solarjunkie
(Thu 18:05 03/Nov/05)
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That's a risk I'm prepared to take. I know how to iron velvet (from the back, on a towel) but not sure about the washing.
shaneystar
(Thu 18:48 03/Nov/05)If they are real velvet then I would take Andy's advice and have them dry cleaned.Because otherwise they will shrink and the pile will be ruined.However if they are a Dralon type velvet you can wash them in the machine on a cool wash using a non biological powder or a colour wash powder..or liquid as the case may be.Spin them on the lowest setting and hang them out in the air to dry.They should need little or no ironing.If they are large curtains do them one at a time in the machine.
shaneystar
(Thu 18:54 03/Nov/05)P.S.
Never iron velvet. It needs to be steamed. Velvet is a piled fabric. An extra filling is added to the weave of the fabric. Ironing will crush this and cause irreversible damage to the velvet. Just hold the iron above the fabric and steam it.
shehin
(Thu 21:02 03/Nov/05)I once took a chance and machine washed a velvet curtain. I washed it on a cool cycle with slowest spin speed. Unfortunately the curtain needed to go straight in the bin as came out torn into shreds. Not quite sure what went wrong but I wouldn't bother trying if I were you.
WendyS
(Fri 12:28 04/Nov/05)I have previously washed velvet curtains But I did it the hard way - hand washing them gently in lukewarm soapy water in the bath. Then I let them drain in the bath overnight to get rid of the worst weight of water and hung them out next day on my Hills Hoist. While they were drying I hand brushed the fabric in one direction. They came up beautifully and didn't shrink but the washing temperature needs to be barely hand warm. I've also found that if the outside weather is unpredictable it's possible to rehang slightly damp curtains back up on their rails, leaving them spread out and the windows open. The breeze dries them out quickly and it's a lot cheaper than paying dry cleaning bills. Good luck. Hope it works for you.
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