How do I get mold smell out of an antique stuffed bear?

Question

Okay, so a freind has an antique bear (his from childhood) that was nearly falling apart, and covered in mold... I took a great chance, and washed it in an old pillowcase, and Febrezed it nearly to death.. and then I spent MANY hours trying to dry the thing (it has really dense stuffing) The bear survived the ordeal (just) ...BUT... The mold smell is still there... is there a way to remove the smell, without hitting the bear with any damaging cleaners like bleach or vinegar, which will undoubtedly cause the bear to fall apart.

Oh, and also, is there a quicker way to dry the bear, or am I stuck with it in the dryer on delicate for hour after hour??

Thanks for your help :)

Answer 1

If nothing else works, and you don't have a doll hospital in your area you are willing to spring for, you might have to perform surgery and give him a transfusion as if the bear is very old and has been moldy for a long time, his stuffing most probably is too.  So maybe you can just cut open a seam carefully only as large as you need to get the old stuffing out while taking special care during removal around the back of the eyes, nose and ear areas (in case it sticks or tears) and hand wash gently the bear skin one last time.  

After it dries, restuff him with fresh filling which you can get from a craft store and then sew him back up again.

Answer 2

the stuffing may need to be replaced.  take it out of the dryer -it needs to be air dryed.

Answer 3

Take a squirt bottle with half water and half vinegar and lightly mist your yarn. Then let dry.

When its dry, do the sniff check and if it still smells,

try another attempt with the squirt bottle.

Roll Teddy in a towel and squeeze hard

Hang him in the sun to dry, if you can.