Did you know that down/feather pillows can be bleached and cleaned? If you're tired of those unsightly yellow stains on your bed pillows, or just want to thoroughly refresh and flesh out your decorative pillows, here's a recipe for you!
Unlike faux-down and polyester-filled pillows, which pile up badly after washing, down pillows clean well as long as you follow a few simple steps.
This requires quite a bit of cleaning product and dryer energy, so we usually only wash twice a year and take care not to breathe in fumes when refilling the washer.
Here is our recipe!
1. Place the insert in the washing machine so that it is as balanced as possible. Two or more dirty down pillows balance the washing machine best.
2. Add one cup (8 ounces) of each cleaning product:
Preferred Detergent
Laundry aids such as Borax, Arm & Hammer, or simple baking soda
bleach
3. If your washing machine has this function, soak it for half an hour (it works well without soaking time).
4. Select the hottest setting for your water temperature and reload cycle.
5. Wash and check that the stain has been removed. Usually once is enough, but if they are very stubborn stains, you'll need to repeat the wash step again before the dryer, as dryers tend to set stains permanently.
6. Put a set of dryer balls in the dryer, or two tennis balls in the tube socks, works too! The dryer ball slaps the pillow as it dries, which loosens feather clumps and helps the filling dry faster. If needed, set on the highest temperature and use dry sheets.
7. After the first dryer cycle, remove the insert and smell "wet dog". If they feel damp or smell a bit like wet dog, repeat the entire dryer cycle again until they are completely dry and smell neutral. If there's still moisture, that little clump of feathers will almost certainly get moldy (and smell horrible!!)
Remember, this does not apply to any artificial down or filler inserts, only feather inserts. There is always some feather shedding and it will show up on the dryer's lint screen, which is completely normal.
Hope this helps you keep your feather inserts fresh and clean for many years to come!
