Recently someone from a Benedictine Monastery asked me an interesting question about safely whitening the natural color of old linens.  I decided to perform a comparison test for "bleaching" old linens, especially "greige" ones that still have the natural linen color.  Often soaking in Oxy (oxygen bleach) will lighten them considerably, but if you need the linens to be white, the best choice is a professional product called "Optic Whitener", available at Dharmatrading or other dye houses.

The napkins are vintage linen by Parisian Prints, in a natural beige color.  The techniques used were: all day sun, mild chlorine bleach, oxy bleach, and Optic Whitener.  The difference between the cloths is imperceptible until the last one: optic whitener.

This product also works to remove the yellowing that can result from spot cleaning with bleach.

Here's a link on the subject from the last word on dyeing, Paula Burch. 

well, at least by tablecloth - charming Etsian honored us by inviting this Williams Sonoma tablecloth to her baby's party. 

Here's the listing - it was faded and boring until dyed chartreuse-

Unusual application of tablecloth by a costume designer

I really love when this happens - when I find a customer who thinks like I do. Though not my fave Mid Century, I enjoy rocking old damasks and embroidered cloths with outrageous color.

 Fabric is fabric, and with imagination this Art Nouveau tablecloth (in my signature weird colors) became part of a costume for Die Fledermaus

The costume is designed by Christianne Myers, an Etsian from Ann Arbor Michigan who was invited to be a guest designer for Opera Memphis:

"Thought you might want to see how your table cloth got used! I'm the costume designer for Die Fledermaus at Opera Memphis. I painted into the pattern to bump up the color and then the draper assembled it into the overskirt."

With a poem by Gerard Manly Hopkins

Here is an explanation of the technique, photo shows unfinished cutwork on one of the mats - click on pic to go to Etsy.

click on pic for mention - and thanks, Girly!