Hermes Silk Scarves - Major dye run removal by BOILING! : eBay Guides

These Extreme Cleaning methods will remove dye runs from Hermes scarves......but....


1) SPOT CLEANING - There is a technique for spot-treating dye runs by stretching the affected area over a bowl and pouring boiling water very slowly through the run...the water drips into the bowl, taking the dye with it.  This method should only be used on runs into white background colour.  You risk leaving a worse looking lighter area if using it on any other colours, particularly dark ones.  I have done this a few times and it certainly works.  The main problems are having enough hands ... and avoiding pouring the water over yourself!

2) FULL IMMERSION - This method should only be used on scarves with seriously major dye runs....  Several people I know have tried this method and it really does work.  Thanks to Cindy for being brave enough to try it out, for taking these great before and after photographs, and allowing me to share them here.

Equipment and Ingredients:

Two suitable containers, for instance two large saucepans, two adjacent sinks, or any similar combination.
A wooden spoon, for stirring and moving the scarf from one container to the other.
A ready supply of BOILING water, a kettle is ideal, or another saucepan.

Kitchen PPE - Personal Protective Equipment - A thick apron, goggles, oven gloves, and no sandals in the lab please, etc.........
or
Burn-Ease or other proprietary first aid treatment if you are as careless as I am.

The Method:

1 Fill one container with boiling water and one with cold water.
2 Dunk the whole scarf right into the boiling water, stirring for 10-15 seconds.
3 Take scarf out of boiling water with the wooden spoon and rinse in the cold water.
4 Pour amazingly coloured boiled water away.
5 Keep the scarf moving in the cold water.
6 Refill the first container with boiling water.
7 Take the scarf out of the cold water, squeeze it gently,  pour the cold water away and refill with cold.
8 Pop the scarf back into the boiling water for another 10-15 seconds.

.....and just back to 3 and repeat this cycle over and over again until the boiling water comes away clear, typically 10 to 12 times.

Then lay the scarf out flat on a large white bath towel and stand back in amazement and wonder.  Once you have recovered yourself get the smoothing iron out and proceed as normal.  I have found that it is actually easier to start ironing from the hems inwards, making sure that you don't go over the hems of course. Start in the corner and smooth towards the middle of the edge, then go to the other corner. Do not be tempted to stretch out the hem when you start ironing otherwise it puckers the roulade. One edge, turn 90 degrees, the next edge and so on around and around gradually smoothing and drying towards the centre.
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I must repeat that this method can only be described as Extreme Cleaning.  It may lighten the whole scarf so should only be used in the most dire cases.  Now have a look at these photos below to see that it really does work.  The pictures of the original runs look better than they did in reality...it looked like it had been tie-dyed!