Spray Starch Alternative

I have grown frustrated with the outrageously priced or the continued clogging of store bought fabric starch. I have been on a mission searching high and low for other alternatives, as I am a little obsessive in making sure my seams are neatly ironed when making my quilt blocks.

I first stumbled across a recipe for homemade spray starch by slowly dissolving corn starch in water. I mixed up a batch, and gave it a test run. It seemed to work alright, but I still wasn't sold and I quickly tired of shaking my spray bottle at each ironing because the starch seemed to settle at the bottom.

Low and behold, I came across Freckled Whimsy's Tidbit Tuesday posting "Vodka for Starch Spray". Of course, the title is what caught my eye, and I thought...What the Heck, I'll give it a try.

I figured I would use some rock-gut vodka I had on hand and which I use for various household cleaning projects. There are endless uses for this particular spirit, so keeping a cheap bottle accessible is very handy. Don't use your speciality drinking vodka --- save the good stuff to toast your new discovery!!

Mix 1 part vodka to 3 parts water (i.e. 1/4 cup vodka to 3/4 cup water), and pour into a 16 oz. spray bottle.
I also added several drops of lavender fragrance (do not use fragrance oils as they will spot your fabric) to make it smell pretty. Cap the bottle, and shake to ensure the fragrance is distributed well. Voila! It works great! It smells fantastic! And, the price is right! I would love to take credit for this fabulous find, but all the glory goes to KarriLyn at Freckled Whimsy.