Posted by Caroline on July 21, 1997 at 09:59:50:
In reply to Re: Bluing (or blueing) posted by kathleen (elder) on July 21, 1997 at 07:56:34
] Bluing is a blue liquid used to make whites seem whiter. According to the dictionary it counteracts the tendency for some white fabrics (especially linen) to turn yellow.
] My mother added a capful or two to the second rinse tub before we started the wash. Note: dress white shirts were washed with the white sheets in the first load, so all the whites got the effect of the bluing.
Blueing(and remember, my spelling is sometimes suspect!), in Regency times, was a blue "stone" which you put into a small cloth bag and threw in with the "whites". What was in it,and whether it was vegetable, mineral or animal, I do not know! I can still buy liquid blueing in my grocery store, if I look hard for it.
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