CARE GUIDE

How to Care for Block-Printed Pillow Covers

Caring for a printed cover starts with the print, not the cloth.

A block-printed cover is two things at once: a piece of cotton or linen, and a layer of color sitting on its surface. Most care advice is written for the cloth. With a printed cover, the print is the part that shows age first, so it makes sense to build the routine around it.

Start With What the Print Dislikes

Printed color has three enemies: friction, heat, and strong light. Friction scuffs the raised edges of a motif. Heat can shift the tone of a dye. Light fades the side of a pillow that faces a window long before the side that faces the room. Nearly every step below is a way of avoiding one of the three.

Day to Day: Shake, Turn, Rotate

• Shake the pillow out and plump it by the sides, not by pressing on the printed face.
• Turn the pillow over every couple of weeks so both faces take the same wear.
• Swap pillows between the sunny end of the sofa and the shaded end so no single cover takes all the light.

When Something Spills

Speed matters more than product. Take the insert out so liquid does not soak through into the fill. Lay the cover flat on a towel. Blot from the outside of the mark toward the center with a clean, damp white cloth, lifting as you go. Rubbing pushes the mark deeper and roughs up the print. If you want to use a mild soap, test it first on the seam allowance inside the cover, where a change in color will never show.

When the Whole Cover Needs Cleaning

For a full clean, dry cleaning is the safer route for block-printed cotton and linen, because it avoids the agitation and the heat that do the damage. Close the zipper before the cover goes anywhere, so the teeth cannot catch the cloth, and mention to the cleaner that the fabric is hand-printed. More detail on cleaning sits in our FAQs.

Storing Covers Between Rooms or Moods

One pleasure of covers is changing them. When a set comes off, store it flat or loosely rolled with the print facing inward. Sharp folds left in place for months can mark a printed surface along the crease. A cotton bag or an old pillowcase keeps dust off and lets the cloth breathe.

A Short Routine Beats an Occasional Rescue

None of this takes long. A cover that is turned, rotated out of the sun, and blotted quickly after a spill rarely needs anything more dramatic.

Thank you for shopping with us, and for giving a good sofa something new to wear.