Berry Mishap
Berry-Picking
Blackberry-picking is the most fun, but it comes with its own hazards…
Purple Blackberry stain!
Oh no, Dulcie got a purple stain on her prettiest dress…
Marked
The stain blends in with the rest of the dress pretty well at the moment, but in my real life experience I know that if you don’t get the stain out right away it will darken, stiffen and harm the fibres. So we stitched around the stain to mark where it is and proceeded with the stain-removal treatment…
Boiling water
…which consists of stretching the fabric over a jar, and securing it with an elastic. Then slowly pouring boiling water through the stain. If it is a bigger, human-sized garment then stretching the stained area over a colander in the sink works really well. Pour carefully!
No Stain!
The stain has completely disappeared! I didn’t realise there was a little leaf under there!
Wash
Then a normal washing with soap and water…
Hurry up and dry
…Dulcie is a bit impatient. It is too hot for her flannel nightie.
Work Apron
Quimper Hittys 
Isn’t that just the loveliest of remedies to get stains out? My mother-in-law taught me that years ago with tablecloth stains (cranberries). It’s comforting to know that the QHs have a human who knows her fiber “stuff” and can remedy this berry mishap. The lovely pinny that proceeded from this experience is very becoming to the little Dulcie.
I learned that trick from my mother-in-law too, when she had an enormous blackberry patch and I had three enthusiastic little berry-pickers. The blue pinafore is made of a sweet little piece of viyella of all things. Not normally an apron fabric, but such a cute little print…Thank you!
Excellent tutorial! Deeply appreciated by those of us with untidy Hittys or Hittys that wish to remain neat and clean. (Though one is always suspicious of persons that wish to remain too tidy…where’s the fun in that?!)
Some of my Hittys are more untidy than others, and, hmmm they DO seem to be the ones that have the most fun, or like Dulcie are just learning.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge 🙂 Such a useful thing to know!
I have used this method a lot, seeing as in summer time I am surrounded by blackberries and people who like to pick them!
Dulcie looked so worried while her dress was being washed and dried. She will undoubtedly remember the cleaning procedure in the future, and also do her best to avoid having to use the procedure!
She is a little worry wart! All is fine now though and we won’t scold her!
Awesome! I did not know this tip, and our Hittys will be blackberrying later today, as well … so this is perfect timing!
Yay! Nice to be blackberrying without laundry-anxiety…Will you be using the pinafore method or the boiling water method??? 🙂
Probably both, but we’ll be sure to start with pinafores!
🙂
At least the color blends…:) It’s all part of the adventure.
We like purple, and were tempted to ignore the stain, but were worried about the long term effects! Luckily we like doing laundry too!
well thank you for this handy tip. I used it today on a mulberry stain! I think mulberries are even messier then black berries! Worked a charm on my own apron!! I love the new blue pinny! I love those Mobius pinnies! you are such a genius….and a generous genius (the best kind!).
You are so welcome, this tip is easy, quick and effective, and all good things (including pinafores) are best spread around 🙂