12 Stain Removers For Clothing

Sometimes life is messy, but we can't let stains ruin our favorite blouses, t-shirts, dresses, or trousers. Your 1st line of defense is to run to a sink before the stain dries and then sets. I like to use a drop of dish soap, water, and a brush, sometimes an extra toothbrush, to gently scrub a stain out. I keep dish soap with Oxi-Clean as one of its ingredients in my bathroom for this purpose.

Thread Up recommends using the following aids to best treat certain stains:

1) Soak a red wine stain in white wine, cover with baking soda, let sit, and rinse.

2) Flush the back of a chocolate stain with cold water, dab with dish soap, and soak.

3) Soak grass stains in white vinegar, then clean with dish soap and that trusty small brush.

4) For foundation stains, apply shaving cream and carefully work it in with a washcloth.

5) To remove lipstick, saturate the stain with hair spray and dab to remove.

6) Gently blot a deodorant stain away with a dryer sheet or the protective foam used on dry cleaning hangers. (Btw: I've switched to a stainless deodorant stick that also works to keep me dry. This one.)

Several more stains I can think of include:

7) For blood stains, rinse in cold water, then soak in detergent and cold water. For stubborn stains, use peroxide or a paste of baking soda and white vinegar. Sprinkling meat tenderizer on the stain sometimes removes it.

8) Tomato sauce, ketchup, vegetable, or fruit stains are tough stains to remove once they dry and set. Act quickly and use cold water, dish soap, and possibly vinegar or lemon juice to help lift out the stain. Sparkling water can help too.

Photo: Pexels

9) For coffee stains, apply a paste of dish soap, white vinegar, and water. Rinse with cold water.

10) Tackle grease stains with dish soap, let it set, and rinse with hot water. Toss in a washing machine quickly if possible. You can also try a solution of baking soda and white vinegar if all else fails.

11) Rubbing alcohol or solutions containing alcohol, such as hand sanitizer or hair spray, will break down ink stains. Spray and blot.

12) A spatter of toothpaste is maddeningly difficult to remove without tossing the garment into a washing machine. Even if you clean the spot immediately with dish soap and water, it leaves a faint white residue. The only thing I know to do is to repeat the process to get as much of the residue out as possible. 

I don't wear dresses until I've brushed my teeth, but in the summer I usually have my t-shirt on already. What do you do to get out a teethpaste stain? What about grease or tomato sauce stains?

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