Blood
Grab some hydrogen peroxide, says author and a green cleaning expert Leslie Reichert. “If there’s a lot of blood, scrape off anything dried and crusty, then pour peroxide on what’s left,” she says. Toss the clothing in the washer and clean it as usual. If a dark mark remains, Reichert recommends using more hydrogen peroxide with a drop of dish soap. “Work them into the clothing with a stiff brush and launder again,” she says.
Make-Up
“Remove make-up from clothing with a touch of castile soap and rubbing alcohol,” says Reichert. Mix them together and place on a damp white cloth. “Blot the stain until the cloth stays white,” she says. “The soap and alcohol will work to break down the make-up so it can be removed in the laundry.” Now, figuring out exactly how the make-up got on your T-shirt in the first place? That’s a whole other discussion. (Lookin’ at you, toddler!)
Ketchup
Attack the red stuff with a sponge and cool water first. Then try mixing about a tablespoon of dishwashing soap in two cups of more cool water and blot the stain with a white cloth until the sudsy liquid is absorbed. Keep dabbing away at it with water until the stain vanishes. But beware of water rings when removing stains from upholstery or carpets, Reichert says. “Make sure to blot just the stained area with a damp cloth, and always work into the center of the stain. This will prevent the stain from growing out.”
Red Wine
Pop open a bottle of white! Yes, you read that right. Reichert recommends using white whine to dab out that pinot noir stain. If you’d rather save your vino for, uh, better uses, Reichert says some club soda and a touch of borax mixed in will do the trick. “Do not pour the white wine or the soda solution directly on the stain. Instead, wet a white cloth with it and blot the area until the stain is removed.”
Pasta Sauce
Start by scraping any sauce you can from the fabric—but do your best not to spread the stain. Then, run cold water over the back of the fabric. Again, this will help keep the stain from spreading. Coat the affected area with liquid laundry detergent and let it sit for a few minutes, then rinse well.
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Crayon
OK, so you goofed and didn’t buy the washable crayons. No worries; we’ve got you covered. “Spray on some WD-40—seriously, it's not just for squeaky doors!” says Hope Arbery, a mother of two and the founder of Pleat Street, an interior design workroom in Atlanta. “Next, rub in some liquid dishwashing soap and wash the clothing as usual.”
Poop
It’s part of regular life. But that doesn’t mean that poop should have a permanent post in your den or on your kids' (or your!) clothes. Here's how to get poop out of clothes: Start by scraping off any poop that you can get. Then, rinse the fabric back and front with cold water. Pretreat in warm water and laundry detergent (make sure it has enzymes) for at least half an hour, then wash in the hottest water possible. And don't forget to disinfect your washing machine before you use it again!
Oil
Reach for some baby powder, says Arbery.“Dust it on the stain. The powder will soak up the oil,” she says. For really tough oil stains, Arbery recommends pouring powder on both sides of the item, then putting a piece of masking tape over it. “Wait overnight. Then remove the tape and dust off the powder. If stain remains, repeat.”
Grass
After taking down grass stains on her sons’ white baseball uniforms for the past eight years, Arbery has earned her black belt in Grass Stain Obliteration. “The best and cheapest way to tackle it is with a bar of Fels-Naptha” she says. “It doesn’t have the catchiest name, but this heavy-duty laundry soap only costs about 99 cents at the grocery store.” Scrub the bar on the stain, toss the clothing into the wash and—poof!—green stains disappear. “You can use it on both whites and colors,” Arbery says. “Best stuff under the sun!”
Chocolate
When asked for his best chocolate stain-busting trick, Bill Begal, a third-generation dry cleaner, said, “Scissors!” As delicious as chocolate may be, it’s no treat trying to get rid of a stain. Begal’s real advice is still pretty simple: After scraping off the excess globs of the sweet stuff, clean clothes A.S.A.P. with hot water and soap. If the stain’s hanging on, Begal says to add a little color-safe bleach to the clothing before putting it in for another go-around in the washing machine.“And never put the garment in the dryer until you are sure the stain is out,” he says. “That will only set the stain.”
