2 Questions about restoring so softs

[Alatariel-Silimaure]

I'm usually someone that looks for so soft ponies with horrible condition flocking so I can deflock them, since I'm not a huge fan of so softs... but at the same time when I get one that is actually in good shape, I don't want to just deflock it...

so I have three so softs I just recently got and their flocking is still pretty good, only a couple rubs on the NDS... so I want to clean them up.

Problem is... I don't know how to clean flocked ponies without destroying the flocking... tried it once, failed... so my questions to everyone is...

#1... how the heck do you clean a dirty so soft without destroying the flocking?

#2... I have a  Truly and a Cupcake that are all yellowed and sunfading would probably do the trick.. do I need to worry about their symbols fading too since it's under the flocking? and I'm assuming I'd have to wrap up the hair too correct?

[hathorcat]

So softs are an awesome set - so congrats on your new additions.

#1 - The key to cleaning rather than accidental deflocking is use tepid [on the cool side] water and ensure that you rub very gently. I use a toothbrush and toothpaste to get the dirt out of the flocking but ensure the flocking remains.

#2 - Unfortunately yellowing on so softs tends to be a result of the glue which holds the flocking in place degrading. Sunfading will not fix yellowed glue, in fact nothing will. Sunfading also doesnt really work on so softs as sunfading works through the plastic absorbing the sunlight, the fur of a so soft cant absorb the rays in the same way. However, if you decide to try sun fading, then yes cover hair, symbols and eyes as normal as the sun can easily get through the fur.

Good luck!

[Alatariel-Silimaure]

So softs are an awesome set - so congrats on your new additions.

#1 - The key to cleaning rather than accidental deflocking is use tepid [on the cool side] water and ensure that you rub very gently. I use a toothbrush and toothpaste to get the dirt out of the flocking but ensure the flocking remains.

#2 - Unfortunately yellowing on so softs tends to be a result of the glue which holds the flocking in place degrading. Sunfading will not fix yellowed glue, in fact nothing will. Sunfading also doesnt really work on so softs as sunfading works through the plastic absorbing the sunlight, the fur of a so soft cant absorb the rays in the same way. However, if you decide to try sun fading, then yes cover hair, symbols and eyes as normal as the sun can easily get through the fur.

Good luck!

I will try the cleaning technique on my lofty then :3

I'll probably just deflock Truly and Cupcake then because they look disgusting all yellow. I'll try cleaning them first though and see if that improves the coloring

[BabyIceCrystal]

If the yellowing is the glue then it is true it will not change back, but keep in mind it might not be. I had a couple of So-Softs come to me that I would have described as yellow but they cleaned up very well. In their cases I believe it was some kind of yellow mold on their fur because the discolouration was very even over their bodies and after about an hours soak in a cool 1/2 bleach bath they had gone back to their proper colour without any scrubbing. One of them was this Sundance:

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Normally with So-Softs I find washing them gently with room temperature water, a toothbrush and Woolite to work quite well. Woolite is a stain remover designed for carpets, and as such works well on the acrylic flocking and won't loosen the glue. It leaves them nice and fluffy and if you finish up by giving them a conditioner wash afterwards they come out very soft.

[Alatariel-Silimaure]

If the yellowing is the glue then it is true it will not change back, but keep in mind it might not be. I had a couple of So-Softs come to me that I would have described as yellow but they cleaned up very well. In their cases I believe it was some kind of yellow mold on their fur because the discolouration was very even over their bodies and after about an hours soak in a cool 1/2 bleach bath they had gone back to their proper colour without any scrubbing. One of them was this Sundance:

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Normally with So-Softs I find washing them gently with room temperature water, a toothbrush and Woolite to work quite well. Woolite is a stain remover designed for carpets, and as such works well on the acrylic flocking and won't loosen the glue. It leaves them nice and fluffy and if you finish up by giving them a conditioner wash afterwards they come out very soft.

awesome! I will definitely try to clean them up first, if they can't be cleaned I'll have to deflock, but I'll exhaust my other options first since they don't have any flocking rubs

[zzzova]

If the yellowing is the glue then it is true it will not change back, but keep in mind it might not be. I had a couple of So-Softs come to me that I would have described as yellow but they cleaned up very well. In their cases I believe it was some kind of yellow mold on their fur because the discolouration was very even over their bodies and after about an hours soak in a cool 1/2 bleach bath they had gone back to their proper colour without any scrubbing. One of them was this Sundance:

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Normally with So-Softs I find washing them gently with room temperature water, a toothbrush and Woolite to work quite well. Woolite is a stain remover designed for carpets, and as such works well on the acrylic flocking and won't loosen the glue. It leaves them nice and fluffy and if you finish up by giving them a conditioner wash afterwards they come out very soft.

Wow she looks amazing! How do you do whit the hair and eyes when you (bleach)bathe her?

[hathorcat]

Wow! She looks like new your Sundance! Gorgeous

[Alatariel-Silimaure]

.... well Truly just decided for me.... I got her wet and gave a very light rub with a toothbrush and a huge chunk of flocking came off


I had already done both Lofty and Cupcake with no problems... so I know I was doing it light enough

so Truly will be getting deflocked

[foalpatrol]

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I would advise against cleaning with a toothbrush.  Any sort of rubbing while the pony is wet will remove the flocking.  To clean Magic Star, I placed her in a bucket of napisan (oxiclean) and water.  Add hot water to the oxiclean to mix it properly, but do not place the pony in until the water is cold.  Leave overnight, rinse, then leave to air dry.  I took her head off and removed her washer when I did this.

[Alatariel-Silimaure]

the toothbrush actually worked really well with cupcake and Lofty, but it took the flocking right off Truly sadly.

Oxyclean is a good idea... I'm gonna have to get some of that to try. Lofty still has a few dirty spots on her and Cupcake is still a little dirty

[Queen Eclipsia]

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I would advise against cleaning with a toothbrush.  Any sort of rubbing while the pony is wet will remove the flocking.  To clean Magic Star, I placed her in a bucket of napisan (oxiclean) and water.  Add hot water to the oxiclean to mix it properly, but do not place the pony in until the water is cold.  Leave overnight, rinse, then leave to air dry.  I took her head off and removed her washer when I did this.

I have a question about this method- what ratio Oxyclean to water do you use? Doesn't Oxyclean fade hair on some ponies?

[foalpatrol]

I have a question about this method- what ratio Oxyclean to water do you use? Doesn't Oxyclean fade hair on some ponies?

I've never thought about the ratio, usually a couple of shakes of the powder, then add water that will be sufficient to cover the pony.

As for oxiclean fading hair - I've no idea.  I've never experienced it myself, and I have used oxiclean on dozens of ponies for various things including rust removal.

[hathorcat]

Lol! I love threads like this because we all have such different experiences. I have had horrible experiences with oxy and a So Soft as it removed all the flocking on her head, although it didnt affect her body weirdly enough

If a toothbrush scrub took her flocking off and you mentioned she was already yellowed, it does sound like she had a glue breakdown issue and the flocking was simply no longer glued on. At least the pony helped you make a decision!

[Alatariel-Silimaure]

Lol! I love threads like this because we all have such different experiences. I have had horrible experiences with oxy and a So Soft as it removed all the flocking on her head, although it didnt affect her body weirdly enough

If a toothbrush scrub took her flocking off and you mentioned she was already yellowed, it does sound like she had a glue breakdown issue and the flocking was simply no longer glued on. At least the pony helped you make a decision!

yup and she's so pretty without her flocking now, she's pretty darn white underneath though she is very slightly cream colored, but I like it :3

[BabyIceCrystal]

I agree with hathorcat, it does sound like the glue was already ruined and that's why the flocking came off so easily. I have also heard a report or two of Oxiclean seeming to take the flocking right off, but I've heard of people using it without trouble like Foalpatrol. I'm going to guess this has a lot to do with the condition of the glue as well.

As for my bleach bath method, I wasn't worried about the eyes at all and only mildly concerned for the hair. About ten years ago I experimented with bleach baths on baits. I messed around with different strengths and lengths of time and discovered (at least for the ponies I happened to be working on) that the bleach needs to be 100% and left soaking in for a day or two before the colour of the plastic starts changing. One of the coloured stripes in the mane did start fading before that and the paint didn't change at all during that time.

So knowing that about bleach, the way I did Sundance and almost every other So-Soft in my collection was to find a plastic container just big enough for the pony to stand in, usually margarine or yogourt tubs though once or twice I cut out the bottom of a 2L pop bottle. Then I draped the mane and tail over the edge outside the tub and poured in the bleach solution to fill the tub with them standing in it. I weighed the pony down with sortof a way too complex system of shampoo bottles and braces. It occurs I should have cut the container lid to allow the head and tail to poke out and then stood the shampoo bottle on top of that... hindsight. The bleach does soak the roots of the hair and wicks a little up it but I never had any sort of fading issue. Immediately after the bleach bath I wash the pony really well to remove any hint of bleach, condition the hair and flocking, pat dry with a towel and leave her in a well ventilated area to dry.

To add to this, I'm nervous of removing So-Soft heads because I don't want the flocking around the seam to end up looking patchy or rough, otherwise I would most certainly have removed the tails before any of this. The bleach baths would have been much easier too had the ponies not been filled with air making them float. So if anyone does end up trying my crazy method, keep this in mind.

Partly as another example and partly because she's so soft and gorgeous to show off, here's my Magic Star that was washed with this method:
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