Today, many housewives do not know how to starch things correctly. But just 10 years ago it was impossible to imagine a formal suit without a shirt with a starched collar. Modern women use special chemicals in their arsenal that help give clothes the desired rigidity. However, many people forget that starch is a natural substance that is not harmful to health. In addition, you can save a lot of money with it.

Why starch things at all?

Clothes, bedding or lace are immersed in water in which starch has previously been diluted. When the fabric dries, an invisible film remains on its surface, imparting rigidity. Clothes look better and, in addition, starched items are much easier to wash. After all, the film prevents dirt from being absorbed into the fibers of the fabric.

There is also a drawback. Before you starch things at home, you should think about how they will be used. The fact is that starch does not allow air to pass through. Therefore, summer wardrobe items cannot be completely processed. You can stiffen the collar or cuffs. Bed linen can be fully starched.

Basic principles

Every housewife should know how to starch things correctly. The main thing is to be able to properly prepare the solution, which consists of only two ingredients: water and powder. There are many varieties of starch available on the market. Most often you can find a powder that is extracted from potatoes, rice or corn. Starch from different products has some differences. They are essential for cooks and cooks. But for those who don’t know how to starch a thing, it doesn’t matter which powder to choose.

Most housewives most often use this powder. It has a slight bluish tint and quickly thickens when diluted with water. Cornstarch can also be used. But it thickens much worse, which means it imparts less rigidity to things.

Before starching an item, it should be washed thoroughly. not recommended to use. They will only repel starch. In order for the solution to saturate the material, you should dip a dry or slightly damp item into it.

Soft starching

This option is suitable for underwear and snow-white blouses. These things should not be too hard, otherwise they will simply be uncomfortable to use. Before starching an item, you need to prepare a weak solution. One teaspoon of powder will be enough for a liter of water. The solution can be prepared using cold water. The powder is stirred until all lumps disappear. Next, a small portion of the water is heated to boiling. Start pouring the starch solution into the bowl with the hot liquid, stirring constantly.

You must wait until the mixture cools down. As soon as it reaches room temperature, you can lower the item into it. The result should be a cloudy liquid, the density of which will be slightly greater than that of plain water. The clothes are rinsed in the resulting liquid or soaked for several minutes. This time will be enough for all the fibers to be well saturated with starch. There is no need to squeeze the clothes too hard. Starch gives fabric rigidity. In order to iron it out, you will have to put in more effort.

Medium starch

This method is used to stiffen men's shirts, tablecloths, furniture covers, and lace. How to starch things correctly? You'll have to use a little more powder. Two teaspoons of starch per liter of water will be enough. The method for preparing the mixture is the same. First, the powder is diluted with cold water, and then hot liquid is added.

The mixture is considered correct if it turns out translucent and has the consistency of liquid sour cream. Dry or slightly damp items are immersed in the solution for five minutes. It is better not to wring out clothes. To avoid unsightly creases, you need to let the solution drain on its own.

Hard starching

This option is most often used for various decorative elements, as well as petticoats of wedding dresses. This treatment option is used least often for cuffs and collars. How to starch something with potato starch? Additionally, you will have to use borax. A teaspoon of this substance is diluted in a glass of hot boiled water. Two tablespoons of starch are diluted to a homogeneous consistency in a liter of cold water. Additionally, heat another liter of water to a boil and pour it into the starch solution. Lastly, borax is added to the mixture. All ingredients are mixed and left for two hours.

The hard starch solution should have a thick consistency. If it is necessary to stiffen large items, the amount of ingredients increases proportionally. There should be as much liquid as necessary to completely cover the fan. The fabric is soaked in the solution for 20-30 minutes. Next, the item is taken out and the mixture is allowed to drain.

Features of the procedure with some tissues

How to starch tulle items correctly? This material is often used for sewing wedding dresses and the skirt will be fuller if it is stiffened. The material is starched in a weak or medium solution. It all depends on the result that the hostess wants to get. The material is soaked in liquid for several minutes, then wrung out. You can iron tulle only when wet at medium temperature. We must not forget that this material melts quickly.

Be careful when starching knitted items. The problem is that such products can become deformed during processing. You can starch in a weak solution. You should not squeeze out the material afterwards. Hats can be dried on a jar that is the size of your head. It is worth remembering that during the drying process the item may stretch or lose its shape.

Popular today are summer ones. After each wash, they also have to be starched. To ensure that shoes keep their shape well, a medium starch solution is suitable. The boots are immersed in a container of liquid for several minutes. Next, the shoes are hung with the tops down.

Let's sum it up

Starch gives things a well-groomed look. There is no need to purchase expensive new items that increase the rigidity of things. A powder of natural origin will cope with a simple task. Therefore, every girl should know how to starch things correctly!

Starch things at home may seem like a simple task, but in fact it is very important to know how to do it correctly. If you overdo it with starch, you risk getting a wooden rag instead of a thick item, so the proportions must also be observed correctly. In our article we will tell you how to starch things correctly.

Many people ask: “Why do you need to starch things at all?” The fact is that things are starched for the reason that after this the fabric becomes denser and holds its shape better. In addition, an invisible film forms on such things, which serves as a kind of barrier for dirt to penetrate deep into the tissue. Thus, it is much easier to remove dirt from starched items. But you don’t need to starch the entire thing, but only some areas. Although it depends on the degree of starch. There are only three of them:

Each of them is suitable for a specific type of clothing. We will look at them in more detail a little later, but now let's figure out how to starch things at home.

The first thing you need to know is how to prepare a solution that can be used to starch things. It is prepared from two ingredients: starch and water. But it is very important to clarify that not every starch that exists on store shelves is suitable for this. For example, rice or corn starch are completely unsuitable, but if you use potato starch, you will get the best result!

Before you start starching things, you need to wash them thoroughly, wring them out and let them dry at least a little. You can starch both dry and wet things, it will not play a special role.

So, now we can consider the degree of starching of things at home, and also find out what kind of clothes they are suitable for.

	Starching method
	First you need to boil water, then dilute the starch in a glass of cold water. Calculate its quantity from the proportion: one teaspoon of starch per liter of water. After the water boils, you need to pour the starch diluted in water into a container and cool the solution. After this, you can starch the item by dipping it into the solution for a few seconds. You can also pour the solution into a spray bottle to selectively starch some parts of your clothes without getting them completely wet. After this, lightly wring out the fabric and leave to dry. Be careful not to over-dry starched items, as they will be difficult to iron.	A low degree of starch can be used to starch any items made from light fabrics, as well as curtains, curtains and bed linen. This is a great way to starch a shirt.
	You can prepare a solution for a medium degree of starch in the same way as for a weak one. Only in this case, starch should be taken at the rate of two teaspoons per liter of water. Having prepared the solution, you can soak things in it, or pour it into a spray bottle to selectively starch one or another part of the clothing.	With a medium degree of starch, you can starch things made of thick fabric, skirts, ribbons and tablecloths. You can also starch knitted and woolen items.
	Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan, while mixing two tablespoons of potato starch with cold water. Also, take a glass of hot water and dissolve one teaspoon of borax in it, leaving it to cool. When the water boils, pour starch and borax solution into it, then remove from heat and let the solution cool. You can starch things with this solution in the same way as in the case of the first two options. Just keep in mind that by keeping the item in such a strong starch solution, you risk getting uncomfortable and tough clothes. So don't overdo it.	A high degree of starching of items is suitable for items made of coarse fabrics, as well as petticoats, collars and denim items. You can starch your hat this way.

Thus, you can make sure that starching things at home is not so difficult if you know exactly how to prepare a starch solution.

Just some fifty years ago, no self-respecting woman would leave the house if her blouse or lace collar were not tightly shaped and, of course, would not let her husband go without starching the cuffs and collar of his shirt.

Our grandmothers knew how to starch fabric and used it. Starching was given great importance, and it was used for almost all textiles.

It was mandatory to starch the collars and cuffs of shirts, blouses and school uniforms, aprons, bed linen and tablecloths with napkins.

About twenty years ago they stopped attaching importance to starching, but today housewives are again returning to this type of caring for things. We’ll talk about how you can starch a fabric or product at home in this material.

A starched item has a clearer shape, looks fresher and is less susceptible to contamination. If you jealously monitor the appearance of your loved ones and your own image, then you should definitely know how to starch things and use this knowledge.

So, a method of caring for things that has been proven over the years is the use of starch.

There are several types of this product on sale: potato starch, corn starch, wheat starch, rice starch.

Depending on the basis of production, they have differences in taste and price, but from the point of view of caring for things, their properties are the same, so you can use the one you have at home, or buy a more affordable one.

Depending on the density of processing, starching can be harder or softer.

• Soft Suitable for thin fabrics. Starch milk is prepared at the rate of 1 teaspoon per 1 liter of water.
• Average you can treat bed linen, tablecloth, favorite blouse. In this case, you need to take 1 tablespoon of starch for 1 liter of water.
• Hard used for collars, caps and various decorative elements. To create a solution you will need 2 or 3 tablespoons of starch.

The processing principle for these types is the same. To begin with, wash the laundry very well in the washing machine, because the applied solution will create a light crust on the clothes.

It will prevent dirt from penetrating into the fibers, but existing dirt will also be packed into the fabric. After washing, soak the items in the solution for five minutes and lay them out to dry.

Then iron without using steam to set the applied crust.

Without the use of starch

There are also other types of processing to make things more well-groomed. Although they are called starching, they are based on other products.

It is better to use this method to add density to a decorative product, rather than to linen.

You can starch without starch:

• using gelatin– first, make a gelatin base at the rate of 1 tablespoon per glass of water, stir, heat and after the gelatin has dissolved, lower the product into the solution. It is necessary to dry the item in a straightened form;
• granulated sugar– to do this, dissolve 7 tablespoons of granulated sugar in a liter of water and heat it to a boil. Dip the items to be treated into the hot solution and leave until they cool. Then dry also in a straightened form;
• PVA glue– this method allows things to become denser, it is ideal for interior items. Dissolve 1 part glue in 2 parts water and you can immediately lower the product into the solution. After it is soaked, straighten it and dry it in a lying position.

Thanks to the latest technologies, caring for clothes has become much easier than in the days of our grandmothers.

Washing clothes in an automatic washing machine does not take much effort or even a lot of time. But in addition to washing, you can immediately starch your laundry in it.

How to starch fabric when washing? There are several types of powdered formulations and gel solutions on sale, which already contain substances that create a starching effect; they are sold in stores selling household chemicals.

To obtain the desired effect, add the purchased composition to the rinsing compartment and take out the soaked item. After drying, all you have to do is iron it and you're done.

This method is effective if you need to process a large piece of fabric, bed linen or the entire thing. How can you starch individual parts of clothing without resorting to making a solution?

For this purpose, there are also assistants on sale, and they can also be bought in household chemical stores. They are sold in spray form. When ironing, apply the product to the linen, and under the action of a hot iron it is fixed to the clothes. Everything is very simple.

Now you know how to starch bed linen, cuffs and collars, tablecloths and napkins at home. It also became known how to starch using a washing machine, modern means and grandma’s methods.

Try it, you will definitely succeed, and, in addition, you will notice that your clothes absorb less dirt and are easier to care for.

Beautiful clothes are easy, you just have to try.

Mother of two children. I have been housekeeping for over 7 years - this is my main job. I like to experiment, I constantly try different means, methods, techniques that can make our life easier, more modern, more fulfilling. I love my family.

The process of treating things with starch makes them more elastic. This makes things wrinkle less and stay clean longer. In addition, starched products always look impeccable and very elegant. Such clothes will last you a longer time. By starching, things can be given additional strength, as well as slightly whiten or add freshness to the texture of the material. In earlier times, housewives were required to starch all their existing things. Today, such processing is used quite rarely. Doctors do not recommend treating bedding set accessories with starch. It is believed that this sharply reduces the permeability of air in the fibers of the fabric. From the point of view of hygiene rules, this cannot be useful. For similar reasons, underwear is not treated with starch. They can only be partially starched.

Thus, elements of clothing such as collars, frills or cuffs are often starched. Table linen needs to be starched. After all, tablecloths along with napkins will therefore better retain their shape, which means they will look more advantageous in appearance. You can starch covers on pieces of furniture, curtains, summer knitted panama hats and hats, skirts and a number of other things. Before directly starching the product, you must wash it or remove all stains from it. If the stains on things are not too noticeable, then after treatment with starch they will not be visible at all. After all, the composition of starch can impart additional whiteness to the fibers. Naturally, such processing of washed items will also depend on the preferences and tastes of their owner.

There are three ways in which you can process things with starch. Thus, starching can be soft, medium or hard. The soft method differs in that the solution needs to be prepared from only seven to nine grams of starch. Starch should be taken per liter of water. To prepare the solution, starch must first be mixed in a relatively small part of cold water, then with constant stirring it is poured with the required volume of boiling water. The result should be a composition resembling translucent glue. Make sure there are no lumps in your solution.

The soft version of starching should be used to process clothes made from thin fabrics such as chintz, cambric or satin. Using the soft method, it is possible to starch even delicate knitwear. To do this, you need to take just a little starch, within one teaspoon per liter of water. To form a more rigid fixation of the product, for example, for processing table linen or furniture covers, it is recommended to make a solution of medium consistency in terms of consistency. For this purpose, you need to take approximately ten to twelve grams of starch per liter of water. The solution itself must be prepared following the example of what is used for soft starch.

As a result of hard starching, you can give the necessary rigidity to cuffs, collars or petticoats. To prepare the appropriate solution, take fifty grams of starch per liter of water. The starch is mixed well to form a substance similar to starch milk. It is recommended to add about fifteen grams of borax to it, previously completely dissolved in hot water and cooled. The resulting solution should be thoroughly mixed and left for about two to three hours. To starch the desired item, it should be completely dipped into the solution and stirred in it. Make sure that the fabric of the product can be completely saturated with dissolved starch.

After this treatment, the item must be wrung out and left to dry. Then you should spray it with water and let it sit for several hours. Starched items should be ironed with a low-heat iron. If you used the hard version for starch treatment, then after the procedure you need to wring out the item and wrap it in a piece of white cloth. At the same time, be sure to straighten out all the creases and folds. You need to press firmly on the white fabric so that the solution can seem to be absorbed into the fibers of the material of the product. Next, the item can also be ironed with a barely heated iron.

If you want to give the product a distinct shine, then you can use a special glossy type of starch. It contains five parts starch, three parts white talc and one part borax. These components need to be mixed and filled with cold water. To starch a product with this composition, a cloth napkin is first dipped into it. When it is saturated with the composition, the item is also treated with starch. The product then needs to be ironed. Under the influence of heat, the composition itself will starch things, giving it the necessary shine. It is not possible to treat things with starch after each wash. After all, the effect achieved by such treatment will be maintained for three to five washes.

Today, hardware stores sell ready-made compositions necessary for starching purposes. They can simply be added to the water when washed items are rinsed. Such products are perfect for you if you want to starch small-sized products or parts thereof. Housewives are also offered compositions in the form of aerosols, which are very convenient for practical use. There are starch compositions that can even be added to the washing machine.

Sometimes starch is included in some types of washing powders. Sometimes when ironing starched items, they begin to stick to the soleplate of a warm iron. To avoid this, you can add some milk to the starch solution before use. Or you can start ironing the starched item while it is still damp. Starched items will emphasize your neatness and impeccability. Therefore, you should not forget about such a useful procedure.

Reading time: 4 minutes

Any things need care: washing, drying, ironing. Many people forget about an important stage - starching. The process will harden the products and whiten them. The service life is extended and they look newer. How to starch fabric at home can be read below, where we list several of the most popular methods.

Types of starching

There are three ways:

Soft	Used for processing thin blouses, blouses, curtains and bed linen. The items are made from cambric, chiffon, muslin, organza, tulle.	Dilute a teaspoon of starch in a liter of water. For large items, take more water and maintain the proportions.
Medium hard	Used for men's shirts, napkins, tablecloths, decorative fabric accessories.	For one liter of water you will need a tablespoon of starch.
Hard	This method is used to starch petticoats, tutus, stand-up collars, and cuffs.	Take two full tablespoons of starch per liter of water.

starching methods: 1) soft, 2) medium hard, 3) hard

Why do you starch fabric?

After processing, the material acquires useful properties:

• creases less and does not lose shape;
• becomes more resistant to dirt, no need to wash often;
• dirt remains on the surface and is easier to wash off;
• bleaching yellowed items.

Since starched material does not allow air to pass through, you should not completely treat everyday items, especially in summer. Watch the video for tips.

Starching of some products

How to starch curtains:

1. Calculate the amount of starch in the proportion of 1 or 1.5 teaspoons per liter of water. It depends on the density of the product (tulle or thick curtain).
2. Dilute the granular substance in cold water, then add warm water and heat. When you get a transparent sticky mass, pour in cold water and stir quickly.
3. Place the product there for half an hour. Wring it out well, dry it a little and iron the wet item.

How to starch shirts at home:

1. For thin chiffon, cambric or silk shirts, a soft solution is used.
2. or cotton shirts are treated with a medium-hard compound.
3. Cuffs and collars need hard starching.
4. The shirt is soaked in the solution for a quarter of an hour and gently wrung out. Dry on hangers over the bath so that the water drains off.
5. Iron a slightly damp item. They do this quickly, removing creases and folds. If you dry it with an iron, yellow traces of starch will remain. The shirt should dry completely after ironing.

For machine embroidery, prepare a weak solution and spray a small amount on the reverse side.

Particularly hard solution

By adding borax you can get a composition for very hard starch:

• pour 3 tablespoons of starch into a saucepan with a liter of cold water;
• pour a teaspoon of borax into a glass of boiling water, stir and cool;
• add one mixture to the other and leave for an hour, then stir;
• Soak cuffs, collar or other hard item in the solution and dry.

This method will take from 5 to 15 minutes. It is important that the solution completely saturates the material.

If you follow some nuances, the starching process will become easier and the quality of things will improve:

• when adding a pinch of salt to the solution, the fabric will acquire a special shine;
• if you drop a little turpentine into the composition, the material will not stick to the iron when ironing;
• items treated with starch cannot be dried in the cold;
• Crocheted products are dried on a flat surface, secured with pins so that they do not deform.

How to dry and iron

• You can dry the starched material in a straightened state on a flat surface, placing a clean cloth under it;
• products with embroidery are dried in a hoop and ironed from the inside out at a low temperature;
• openwork napkins are ironed through the fabric at the minimum temperature of the iron;
• lace that does not need to be washed is not soaked in a starch solution - just soak a cloth in it and wipe it, then iron it through a piece of fabric.

What you can’t starch

1. . Starched items hardly allow air to pass through and will not allow the skin to breathe normally. The hygroscopicity of the material decreases.
2. For the same reasons, doctors advise not to starch bed linen.
3. On dark things after starching there will be white streaks and spots. They become noticeable after drying.
4. Products made from synthetic or mixed fabrics. Unnatural fibers cannot be starched.
5. Material with embroidery floss threads. They will stop shining nicely and stick to each other.

other methods

Without starch, rigidity is imparted to things using several other means.

Using gelatin

Recipe for gelatin solution for product stability:

• pour a tablespoon of gelatin into a glass of water;
• after swelling, heat in a steam bath;
• Use the mixture when the gelatin is completely dissolved.

This method is suitable for processing decorative items and flowers. Gelatin is used to shape the edges of hats, various baskets or vases. It will restore shine to satin products.

PVA glue

How to prepare the composition:

• dilute 100 g of glue in a glass of water;
• stir until smooth;
• apply immediately.

This method is suitable for small items, napkins. The thing is placed in the solution and wait until it is saturated with it. Then it is taken out and carefully squeezed out. Dry horizontally, you can fix the napkin on an unnecessary pillow.

Using sugar

This substance can be found in every person's kitchen. How to do:

• pour 150 g of granulated sugar into a liter of water;
• put on fire and prepare the syrup, stirring occasionally to completely dissolve the sugar;
• after boiling, turn off the stove and place the prepared item in a saucepan with the solution;
• When it is soaked, squeeze it out and put it on the table until dry.

If it was not possible to harden the product with sugar the first time, it is recommended to repeat all the steps. The syrup is suitable for forming openwork napkins or knitted boots.

What else to use

• You can buy the product in the form of a spray in the store. Just spray it on your clothes before ironing. Starch is sold in liquid form, which is diluted with plain water. This product does not need to be boiled.
• In addition to potato starch, you can buy corn or rice starch. But potato gives things a white, sometimes even bluish tint. It thickens better and faster.
• Starched clothes or home textiles will last longer, look newer and more attractive. It's worth spending a little time on this.