Save money and make your own
I had to learn to make my own spray starch because I couldn’t deal with the fragrances in commercial starch. I’m glad I did because this is so much less expensive! All you need is a spray bottle, water and cornstarch.
Only make what you can use in a day or 2. It does go rancid. I seem to use a little more than a cup in an average cutting session.
1. Put 1 1/2 cups of water in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. While waiting for the water to boil, dissolve 2 – 3 teaspoons of cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of cold water in a cup or small bowl. Keep mixing the cornstarch while waiting for the water to boil.
3. After the water boils, pour the cornstarch mixture into the boiling water and stir for a minute or so. The liquid will be clear or slightly cloudy.
4. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
5. Transfer the starch mixture to a spray bottle and starch away! Throw it out after a couple of days.
If you want a VERY STIFF starch for your project, dissolve THREE TABLESPOONS of starch in about three tablespoons of cold water and add it slowly to the boiling water. You will end up with a super stiff starch. If it’s too stiff just add cold water after it’s made to dilute it.
Starching Yardage
If you need to starch yardage you can use a method that I learned from my friend, Julie. Makes a large batch of starch and soak the fabric in it. Once the fabric is saturated, place a drying rack in a bathtub or outside and then drape the fabric neatly over the rack. Let the fabric drip dry and then iron it. The fabric will be like paper and you will have no problems with cut bias edges.
