Stain Fighting 101: My 7 Favorite Laundry Secrets

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Laundry Secrets

When it comes to kids, the only thing as sure as meltdowns are the stains on their clothes. Be it jelly, paint or a mystery, I think it’s safe to say that we’ve all made the sad walk from the laundry room to the trash can with an item of clothing that was beyond repair. Here are my laundry secrets shared with you!

My inspiration for this post came from a fabulous little dress I found at a kids resale store just in time for my daughter’s third birthday. After the second wear, it met up with a pen that was in the pocket of my husband’s jeans and the result was ugly:

This picture doesn’t do it justice – it looked like a squid had attacked it!

An entire bottle of hairspray, liquid Tide right on the stain and more washes than I can count…ta da! Not perfect, but perfectly acceptable for preschool!

So next time life hands you red paint on a white shirt, don’t go down without a fight! Here are a few of my favorite stain fighting recipes and secrets:

Shout Gel Advanced and Biz

Great for: Under arm stains, sweat stains, sunscreen stains, any stain on a white garment, lost causes.

How to: Spray stain with Shout Gel and then sprinkle with Biz. Let it sit for at least an hour but preferably overnight. Wash with additional Biz and then repeat if necessary BEFORE drying.

Hairspray

Great for: Ink stains, pen or marker stains.

How to: Spray until you can’t spray no more. Let garment sit and dry. Rinse and repeat until stain improves.

 Biz and Water

Great for: Delicate whites, old whites.

How to: Mix warm water and Biz in a sink or dish pan. Let item soak overnight. *This recipe has safely whitened a 30 year old baptismal gown safely and saved my favorite Gap t-shirt from a permanent shade of gray.

Lemon Juice and Sunlight

Great For: Yellowing whites, delicate whites.

How to: Squeeze juice from a lemon directly onto stain and set in the sun to dry.

Meat Tenderizer

Great For: Protein stains such as baby formula.

How To: Sprinkle meat tenderizer onto the moistened stain. Let sit and then launder as usual.

Oxi Clean Laundry Stain Spray and Tide Boost

Great For: Fast fixes.

How To: Spray stain and let sit for a few minutes (like it the time it takes to load the washer). Add in Tide Boost and regular detergent and let it go!

Goof Off

Great For: Sticky stains like gum, sticker residue, permanent markers (not a given, but at least a prayer).

How To: Spray stain and blot / rub with a rag to remove residue. Spray with a stain remover like Shout or Oxy Clean to remove oily residue and then launder as usual.  

What are your laundry / stain-removing secrets? 

 

4 COMMENTS

  1. I should just go ahead and print this one out and hang it in the laundry room. Thanks for the great advice Beth!

  2. This is awesome advise! Thank you so much!!! I accidentally just washed a favorite delicate grey shirt with white ribbon accent and pair of brand new white shorts with a bright blue shirt and it all turned shades of blue 🙁 I found a tip online to try RIT dye color remover on things that are only white and it will remove all other colors from the garment. Haven’t tried it yet but anxious to see if it works on the shorts. I would sure love to know how to fix my shirt though!

  3. You have some great tips for keeping your Kids Dresses looking like new. However, the most important tip I have learned over the years is to be careful where you shop. With how quickly your children grow, and how often you find yourself treating stains, you don’t want to overspend on your children’s clothes. When I went school shopping with my little ones this year, we just went to Burlington Coat Factory. I actually bought a few of the same items my sister bought for her daughter (the girls are only a few weeks apart in age) without realizing it, only she spent more than twice as much!

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