Yellowing/Dulled White/Patterned Pillowcases

[moontunes]

The bedding I use is white with this lovely pastel pink China vase inspired pattern. Recently, I've noticed the pillowcases look more yellowed than the duvet cover, causing the white/pastel pink to become rather dull, especially when compared against the duvet, where the white is still white and so the pattern still looks crisp.

I know why this has happened, but does anyone know how to fix this? I can see lots of advice online for plain white pillowcases, but none for patterned ones, and I don't want to risk damaging the pillowcases as the set is no longer sold. It's been like this for a while and I'm worried they're a lost cause now.

Thank you in advance!

I was just about to post a similar question when I saw yours! Mine is for Orla Kiely. My husband’s pillowcase always ends up with a bit of a yellowing patch on it - either hair products or drool!

I have seen people recommend bleach on whites, but I don’t want it to bleach out the patters.

Nappisan.

Soak them, then wash.

@MarinaPunta That is exactly my concern. My sheets are washed regularly, I keep clean... stains happen all the same and I know it isn't due to uncleanliness, so I'm not super concerned about them existing fundamentally. (I'm the only one who sees my bed!) My issue is the mismatch between how the pillowcases look and how the sheets look.

And, as I'm sure you understand, I don't want to use bleach and get the yellow out, only to make the pink fade. There will still be a mismatch and it's harder to fix a bleach issue than it is to remove a stain.

I've seen people suggest that just washing it in hot water and drying it outside will clear up yellowing, but I'm dubious.

@IdaDown Thank you! I will give that a try.

I had the same issue with my oral kiely bedding. White background with pale grey pattern and the pillowcases (especially DH’s) went yellow. I used borax. Gave a long soak in hot water with borax, washed on 60 and dried outside. All yellow traces gone.

I've had some success with Shout spray-on stain remover. Straight into a 60C wash after applying.