My hand painted silk scarf needs to be "set" (the dyes) ..Is this the same as steam cleaning at a cleaners?

Question

I made a gorgeous scarf and although i know how to steam set it at home, i am a bit afraid of ruining it with water spots. Can the same result be achieved at a local cleaners with steam cleaning?

Answer 1

I seriously doubt that it would be the same - it takes several hours to steam-set silk dyes. You can try taking the specs for setting the particular dyes you used to the owner or manager (not just a clerk) at your cleaners and see if they think they can do it. You could even make a second simple practice piece for them to experiment on.

I assume you've looked at the info on the Dharma Trading Co. site about silk dyeing and steam-setting.

http://www.dharmatrading.com/silkpaintin...

If you don't get a more definitive answer here, another place you may wish to try is the Yahoo group 'silkpainting'.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/silkpainti...

Good luck.

Answer 2

I wouldn't take a chance. It needs dry heat. You may be better off pressing it with a dry iron under a pressing cloth.

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