My grandmother always said that, "It all comes out in the wash!" But we as moms know that it doesn't always work that way. Some stains are just stubborn. Well, I have had my share of woes with stains, and more times than I would like to count! I have two toddlers ages 18 months and 2.5 years old, so stain removal knowledge has come with a price. It is frustrating to say the least, but hopefully a few mistakes I have learned from can help you salvage or entirely avoid throwing your laundry in the trash! I do not claim to be a "stain doctor" in any way, so if any of you ladies have any more tips to add that I have not covered, please feel free to leave them in the comment section! Your knowledge is very valuable!
Tip #1: Let's say you spatter oil from your favorite greasy food onto a new cotton shirt and it leaves ugly greasy spots on your clothing; if you can, always change immediately so you can treat the stain! Time is always of the essence when it comes to stain removal. Place the shirt on a flat surface and take dawn dish washing liquid and put a generous amount directly on the stain. Let the stain set for 10-15 minutes if you can and then wash the shirt in warm/ hot water. the combination of the hot water and the grease-busting dish washing liquid will break up that grease stain.
Tip #2: Windex removes red! I have not tested this technique on every type of fabric/ material, but I have found that most red stains can be removed by removing the soiled clothing and directly spraying Windex onto the stain and letting it set for about 10-15 minutes. Then promptly wash the clothing in lukewarm water.
Tip #3: Washing your clothing on the correct temperature setting is important to keep them looking clean and looking great. Always separate your clothing; brights/dark colors should be separated from whites/pastels, and towels should always be separated from regular clothing to prevent annoying fuzz balls. To keep your towels looking clean and crisp, always separate colored towels from white towels. It depends on the color of the clothing to determine which temperature setting to use. For example, bright/ dark clothing needs to be washed in cold water to avoid causing color fade, and pastels/ whites need to be washed in warm water. If you are washing towels, try to use hot water if possible and separate them according to color. If they are white towels, use bleach (but not too much or you will end up with holes!). For colored towels, use a color-safe bleach or simple washing powders (I use liquid All detergent for mine).
Tip #4: Don't fret over ink stains! It's safe to say that I have removed about 500 pen stains. The important thing is to check your clothing for pen stains before you wash the clothing, because washing the clothing before you properly treat them is a sure-fire way of setting a nasty permanent stain!! Once you locate the pen stain lay the clothing flat, and spray any generic non-aerosol hair spray onto the stain. I use White Rain hairspray from Dollar Tree, but you can use any brand you would like. Just be sure to use the old type style of hair spray bottles and not the new mist kind (aerosol). You want to drench the stain in hair spray! Let the hairspray works its magic for about 5 minutes, and then put the clothing through the wash (I always use All detergent and combined with the hairspray, it takes the stain right out!)
Tip #5: Color bleeding is an awful mess to deal with, but with proper methods you can correct, and prevent future mishaps. All you need to do is cut up an old white cotton t-shirt into strips, and toss them into your laundry during the wash cycle. These cotton strips will act as a color-catcher and when your garment bleeds its color, the strips of cloth will "catch" the color preventing runs and bleeding. From reading this blog, you can already tell that my go-to washing detergent is All! It removes some of the toughest stains! Examine the garment after removing it from the wash and make sure the stain has been removed and the colors are no longer bleeding prior to putting it in the dryer! This is important, because if you dry the clothing with the stains still present, it will permanently set the stain! If the stain is still there, put the clothing through another cycle with the strips of cotton cloth.
Tip #6: Hydrogen Peroxide removes blood stains! Simply soak a cotton ball in peroxide and clean the affected area. Wash the soiled clothing afterwards!
I hope this short blog has helped ladies, and again, if you have any other tips that I haven't mentioned above, please feel free to leave me a comment! I would love to hear your input!
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