"Trish Brown" wrote in message
FarmI wrote:


Yes, but the unoiled one whihc one uses for feather pillows/doonas etc.
I was gobbsmacked that they actually had something I really wanted. I
went home and measured up and then went back. I should have just bought
the whole roll when I saw it and been done with it as I could have used
it to remake doonas etc till I drop off the twig.

'Remake doonas'? Did I hear you say 'remake doonas'?

This is something I desperately need to do. The stitching of the channels
in nearly all my doonas has deteriorated and the feathers want
redistributing evenly. Since I don't really need to do a tar-baby
impression a this stage of my life (dignified, thank you), I'm a bit chary
of emptying out the feathers when I remake. Fear, I have!

Got any hints for me? ;-D

The easiest way would be to take them to one of the businesses which remake
them but given that you live in such a warm climate they might be a bit
rarer than they are round here (which is a cold climate area).

I have a huge sun room attached to my house and this has the requirements
for doing doonas/cushions ie can be closed completely so no draughts, has
hard surfaces so can be defeathered easily if there are any flying feathers.
The other thing I would mention is a spray bottle so that you can mist
recalcitrant feathers and stuff them slightly damp into whatever you're
stuffing.

I wash all my feather doonas in the bathtub as I don't think dry cleaning
actually "cleans" anything and I do this is hot, high summer so don't be
wary of wetting the feathers. I line dry them over 2 or more wires till I
can't feel any wet spots but if I roll the feathers around in the doona, it
will produce damp spots.

I then stuff them in my clothes dryer with half a dozen tennis balls (this
makes a shocking noise but redistributes and fluffs the feathers up) and I
stay near it as the dryer is so stuffed when I put in my big deep winter
queen doona that it really is a fire hazard.

I give it 5-10 minute bursts (and I have a cooking timer which has a clip on
it and I attach this to myself so that when it goes off I can't forget what
I'm up to) and then pull it out, turn it a bit and rest it and then stuff it
in again for another 5-10 mins.

You can pull out handfuls of feathers and restuff them into the new case
then use a vaccum cleaner with a disposible bag to get out the feathers/down
that gets stuck in corners etc. Put the bag into the new casing and rip it
open inside the new casing. Use pegs or bulldog clips and fold off the end
of each channel as you complete it. Handd tack it before you drag it to the
sewing machine. Use flat felled or other forms of doubled seams.

If you don't have a room like my sun room, then do it outside ona totally
still day and do it slowly, deliberartely and cautiously, then clean up
:-)).