The holidays are upon us and we know that entertaining is so much easier when tablecloths, table runners, cloth napkins and placemats are ready to use. Even heirloom linens that we use only a few times each year, can be kept looking their best by washing, ironing and storing them correctly.
To get your linens in holiday shape, use these simple steps.
Plan which linens to use and examine
Determine the number of guests and what linens you want to use. Linen examples: tablecloths, cloth napkins, decorative kitchen towels, placemats, table runners and bread basket liners.
Sit down with your linens under a good light and examine them. Check for stains since the last use, frayed edges, holes or tears. Determine if you have enough linens for your gathering. If you’ve identified issues with your items, make a plan to fix whatever problem you have encountered.
Prep Your Linens for Your Party
If you haven’t used your items in a while, you’ll need to launder them again. There’s nothing worse than dining on dusty linens.
All newer table linens have a care tag with instructions on how to wash them. For older tablecloths with no labels, you can’t go wrong by hand washing in cool water or in cool water on the gentle cycle of your washer. Take time to rinse thoroughly, especially if you hand wash an item, to remove all detergent and never use a fabric softener which can cause discoloration during storage.
After washing, make sure they are ironed if needed. If there is any doubt as to whether your tablecloth needs to be ironed, take the extra 10 minutes and do it. An ironed table cloth can make the whole room have a completely different look.
What to Do After the Party
After your festivities are over, you’re left with a heap of tablecloths, cloth napkins and other holiday linens. What do you do with them?
The most important step is to take care of them quickly. Don’t let them sit for days on your laundry room floor. If stains are present, you want to deal with them as quickly as possible so you have a chance at removing them. The longer a stain sits, the harder it is to remove. Refer to a stain removal guide to help with specific food stains.
If you treat your table linens gently, they will last for years and years.
Happy holiday linen planning.