Vintage Ticking Pillows; Collecting and Caring For
Sleeping on down feather pillows is a luxurious treat! And when they’re wrapped in charming vintage ticking, they’re downright collectible! Whether it’s the standard blue and white mattress ticking or combinations of stripes and flowers, vintage pillows can be a fun way to dress your bed for beauty and function. Today I’ll share some of my collection, how you can clean and care for them, and how to enjoy them!
Vintage ticking fabric inherently involves stripes. I’ve always loved stripes, and when you pop some flowers in between…I’m in love;) My childhood room’s wallpaper was flowers in between stripes, so guess I’ve grown up with the classic combo. And my love of vintage textiles probably came from my wonderful seamstress Grandma, who started my disease of fabric hoarding {for some of my (no-sew;) vintage fabric projects, check out “Vintage Fabric Wreath” and “Valentine Handkerchief Charger“}.
Sometimes these vintage ticking pillows are sewn with the down feathers inside and sometimes the zippered pillow cover is meant to go over the pillow as protection. You may find the whole pillows with the adorable fabric at sales, or simply the zippered covers. Once I was lucky enough to find a vintage ticking pillow with another vintage ticking, zippered cover over the top! Yes, it was a happy day; just like striking gold!
Before attempting any cleaning, mend any tears in the covers or pillows. You don’t want any feathers to escape or make any tears worse. Hand mending is probably best.
But how to wash a vintage ticking feathered pillow? Some would say you need to dry clean them. I called a dry cleaners once and asked if they would clean feathered pillows. After giving me an astronomical price estimate, they said they would put new fabric around the feathers! Oh, no! The charming fabric is the whole point I want them!
I wash my pillows in the good, old, top loading laundry machine. I’ve usually only spent a couple bucks at a sale for them, and simply want to know they’re fresh. I wash two at a time to balance the load. I use a mild, nice smelling laundry detergent and sometimes add a color safe bleach for a little extra punch (like Snowy, or Oxi). Make sure the pillows are totally covered in the warm water. They could even soak a little.
The drying process takes a little more patience, because getting those feathers inside all dry takes a while! Place the pillows in a dryer with 1 or 2 clean tennis balls. Dry on medium for a couple cycles. It will sound horrible, yes. Then give the pillows a little vitamin D…yes, sunshine. Place them on a clean, light-colored terrycloth towel and let them soak up some rays. Flip them every once in a while to bake those feathers!
Then, back in the drier. Go back and forth from the drier to the sunshine until the feathers seem fluffed and fully dry, and the pillows smell line dry and fresh!
If you’re using the pillows to rest your weary head, you should protect them with another pillowcase or cover. The adorable ticking looks fun poking out from a flowered pillowcase.
I’m using these pillows to sit on for a picnic you’ll get to see this week;) Tomorrow, 11 other bloggers and I are starting a 2 day “Tea and Roses” blog hop! The inspiration starts Tuesday, 5/22! I’ll have all their links on my “Picnic Basket Picnic with Tea and Roses” post this Wednesday!
And we’d love for you to link up your spring inspiration, too, this Saturday and Sunday, 5/26, 27!
The next time you spy one of these charming vintage ticking down pillows or ticking pillow covers, scoop it up! As long as it’s not mildewy, you can give it a wash and enjoy it’s beauty and function!
Enjoy having a whole collection of them on your bed! You can zipper the ticking covers over any of your regular pillows and use them as a pillowcase. Then you’ll have options of feathers, along with the modern, polyester version. Your bedroom or guest room will have all the appeal of a vintage bed and breakfast! You could even enjoy a couple on the couch for lounging!
Hope you had fun seeing my collection of vintage ticking pillows! Maybe you’re inspired to start your own collection, now that you know how to clean and care for them! I’d love to hear if you own any of these pretties, or you remember them at your Grandma’s house or cabin! It’s so fun to hear other reader’s memories of vintage finds!
Sharing at these lovely parties:
I have inherited my great grandmother’s feather bed. It has a ticking stripe cover that still feels thick and sturdy. The cover is stained and it smells. I want to wash it but wasn’t sure if it would fall apart! Any advise? Gina
That’s a tough one, Gina, because it’s so big. I would ask your local cleaners if they have any ideas. But let them know you would want to keep the ticking stripe cover. I think the cover would need to come apart from the feathers, which is a messy job, unless the feathers have another layer around them. If you’re more sentimental about the fabric itself, you could soak it in a non-bleach cleaner like Oxi or Snowy and dry it in the sun to freshen it. If the stains still don’t come out, try my magic formula in this post: https://lorabloomquist.com/how-to-wash-vintage-linens/
Hello, Lora. I enjoyed reading about your enthusiasm for these lovely pillows and covers. I read online that to maintain the feather/down fluff, it is recommended to use surfactant-free “soap”, flakes, etc. Which laundry soap do you use?
Interesting, Alora, guess I’ve never heard that. I just use a mild, nice smelling laundry soap like Mrs. Meyers and add a little color-safe bleach like Oxy or Snowy. And usually do an extra rinse. Getting them dry is the challenge; just need to be patient and go back and forth from dryer to sunshine. Good luck!
Great tips! I buy vintage, embroidered pillowcases but have never even seen pillows in any of the places where I shop. Nice to know you can machine wash the feather pillows.
I love vintage embroidered pillowcases too, Rachel! My linen closet is overflowing;) Thanks for visiting!
I always fall for these pillows too Lora! I have several in my vintage trailer, they go perfect with the decor!
Tania
Yes, Tania! They would be so perfect for a trailer! I think there’s a vintage airstream in my future…
Such a lovely pillow collection, Lora! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm–pinned!
Thanks for pinning, Cecilia!