Daybook: Do something with old, yellow pillowcases
There was a separate
reason for sorting every single pillowcase by color, discovering at the end, there
were 2, white, yellowed pillowcases, with petite, royal blue crochet trim,
firmly and precisely attached to the outer hem of each. It could not be
ripped out and re-used. One pillowcase had a tear and a hole. Without
bleaching, neither one was acceptable.
The perfect bucket for
this project had sat on the backdoor stoop for months slowly filling with
leaves.
The first try was dicey.
Remove the leaves, put the bucket in the bathtub, rinse, fill with hot water,
add bleach, insert the pillowcase up to but not quite at the hem. Fasten the hem to the bucket handle which
rested over the side, out of the water.
The angle of the handle relative to the water was shallow, and bleach
water wicked into the hem and on to the trim. Yanking the pillowcase out
of the water, over the bathtub, hem-and-trim side up, gravity wicked the water downward
and away.
The second try went
well. More distance was put between the
hem and the bleach water. After 20 minutes both pillowcases were wrapped
in a white towel to stanch the drips, hastily carried to a waiting, clean
washing machine where hot, soapy water awaited.
Shut the lid, the machine set to gentle wash with a normal rinse.
The blue trim emerged
from the dryer, unscathed. Refreshed, the pillowcases are less yellow and
are more than willing to jump into the mending pile for repairs, and resume
their place in the household rotation.
Welcome, twins.