Category: Home Interior Tips

This question was submitted from Holly

“How do I clean a 100 year antique baby gown?

Cleaning and preserving a 100 year old gown is not something that should be attempted by the consumer due to the risk of destroying the gown. However, there are several options available to the consumer.

Try these techniques :

If the gown is to be worn again, it can be restored to its original condition by a professional, but this will negate the antique value of the gown. You will have an antique gown that now looks new.

The gown can be cleaned and preserved in its current antique state by a professional. The gown will be clean, but any yellowing and other characteristics of an antique will be preserved. The gown will be packaged in a viewing chest designed for that purpose.

The final option, and the only one open to the do-it-yourself consumer, is to purchase a Christening Gown Preservation box. The gown can be placed in the box in its current condition. The box has a clear window for display. This will greatly retard any further deterioration of the gown, but will not entirely prevent it. Take a look at examples of Gown preservation kits at The Gown Medic website www.Gownmedic.com

Answered by Forum Expert Ed from Suncoast Preservtion Labs.

This question was submitted from Paul E.

“How can I clean bird droppings from cotton/poly blend clothes? “

The best thing to do if the stain is fresh use laundry pre-treatment.

Try this technique :

Use one which is enzyme based, you also can use a laundry booster in addition to your regular laundry detergent (many laundry boosters contain enzymes which break down organic materials).

If the stain remains soak the stained area in a mixture of enzyme digestant and warm water for 1 hour and re-launder. This should do the trick. As a last resort bleach with the strongest bleach safe for the fabric.

Always read and follow garment label instructions and warnings.

A recently submitted question:

How to get Fresh blood out of Bed Sheets. The key is to keep the stain wet, rinse out under the tap in cold water. If the stain is on the mattress sponge out with water (check out the tip in the Howtocleananything.com database on getting blood out of carpet the solution is the same for a mattress).

If you have successfully rinsed the stain just launder as usual in cold water. If the stain is old soak in cool salt water for a long time (hours) and rinse thoroughly. Soak again in water with a some ammonia. Launder as above. Since blood is organic you can try soaking in an enzyme solution for a half an hour and launder. As a last resort bleach if the bed sheets are white. Heat will set this stain.

Precautions:
Always test a small area first before proceeding with any stain removal technique.

Fresh blood is an easy stain to get out. The key is to keep the stain wet, rinse out under the tap in cold water. If you have successfully rinsed the stain just launder as usual in cold water.

If the stain is old soak in cool salt water for a long time (hours) and rinse thoroughly. Soak again in water with a some ammonia. Launder as above. Since blood is organic you can try soaking in an enzyme solution for half an hour to an hour. As a last resort bleach if the clothes are white, or use a color safe bleach. Heat will set this stain.

Always test a small area with any solution you are going to use on the clothes to test for color fastness and damage etc.

This question was submitted from Denise.

“How do I clean butter from clothing? ”

It is always best to treat any greasy stain as quickly as possible. Butter, etc. , attracts dirt and will destroy fabrics if untreated. Try these techniques :
First, when stain is fresh, blot as much excess with paper towels.

Next, we recommend using a spot remover / dry cleaning fluid. Follow the directions and use gloves in a well ventilated area. Place the garment with the stain facing onto a clean, white, absorbent cloth. Then soak another like cloth with the spotting solution and blot the stain from the back. The dissolved butter will transfer to the under cloth.

Rinse the garment with water and repeat only if necessary (dry cleaning fluid can be very hard on many fabrics).

Precautions:Always test on an inconspicuous area before using spotting chemicals.

Here is a qeustion from Brian:

I got candle wax on one of my favorite shirt. It’s 100% cotton. How I can I get the wax out?

Technique:

Chip off and remove as much as possible first. Then take a terry towel and lay it down on the wax, and under the wax stain ( the wax should be between two cleaning towels) then take an iron (on medium heat) and place it on the towel.
The wax will wick up into the towel. Be sure to inspect the towel frequently, and be sure to keep moving to a fresh part of the towel until wax is gone. Pre-treat the stain with a laundry pre-treat and launder as normal. Do not dry shirt in the dryer until you are sure that the stain is removed, heat sets stains. Dyes in candles can cause permanent stains, once wax is removed if a stain remains treat as a dye stain.

This question was submitted from Carolyn D.

“I accidentally left a tube of Chap Stick in my pants pocket. Then I washed and dried them. In the dryer the Chap Stick melted and made oily marks on my pants. The pants are 100% cotton. How can I get the marks out? “

Since the stain sounds bad you maybe best to try dry-cleaning fluid first – you can buy it at larger grocery stores. If the Chap Stick has no color you could treat it like an oil stain. Always test a small area before you proceed to clean with a chemical or technique you have not used before on the fabric you are working on.

Try these techniques :

Chap Stick – Always read and follow the care instructions and any warnings on the garment label.

Saturate the areas with a pretreatment stain remover.

Wait several minutes for product to penetrate. Rub with heavy-duty liquid detergent. Launder immediately.

If color stain remains, launder in chlorine bleach, if safe for the fabric, or in all fabric bleach. When using bleach always check an inside seam for colorfastness.

For extra heavy stains apply dry cleaning fluid to the back of the stain over white absorbent towels. Let dry, rinse and launder as above. (Carefully read and follow directions and cautions on dry cleaning fluid.)

General Info:

Cheese and cheese sauce stains are much easier to remove when fresh. Try to treat the stain as soon as possible.

Techniques:

• First, blot up as much as possible of the cheese (sauce) with paper towels or a clean cloth.
• Next, pre-treat the area with a laundry stain treatment. Wash in warm water with mild detergent. DO NOT put the garment in the dryer or you may permanently set the stain.
• If the stain is still present, you can try to treat the area with a mild ammonia solution (1 tablespoon with ½ cup of water). Let it soak for a few minutes then wash garment again.
• Third, you can repeat the same procedure except use a vinegar solution (1/3 cup vinegar, 2/3 cup water).
• Fourth, try using an enzyme pre-treatment.
• Finally, if the stain still persists and you have yet to put the article in a hot dryer  you can try dry cleaning fluid or take it to a professional dry cleaner.

Precautions:

Always test any cleaning solution on an inconspicuous area of the garment before using.

General Information:

Read and follow the care instructions and any warnings on the garment label.

Treat the stain with a prewash spray or pretreat with a product containing enzymes. Rub with heavy-duty liquid detergent. Launder.

If stain remains, relaunder with bleach that is safe for the fabric. If stain still remains, treat as a “Dye Stain.”

Here is a question submitted by Kelly:

I am having trouble getting clay out of my sons white baseball uniform.

Tools & Technique:

1. Carefully remove whatever you can using a soft scraping tool(spoon).

2. Soak and agitate in water before washing to further remove clay.

3. Use a laundry pre-treat or liquid detergent and rub into stain.

4. Launder as usual.

For tough stains use digestant presoak (don’t use on wool or silk) product for about 30 minutes. Soak old stains for at least several hours.
Launder normally, rinse, and inspect. If stain remains, soak an additional 30 minutes, then rewash. If you are still having trouble try using a laundery booster available at most grocery stores. If the shirt is white you could also try bleaching the stains, by adding blech the the wash water.

Precaution:Always read and follow the care instructions and any warnings on the garment label. Don’t dry the clothes until you have inspected the stain to see if it is gone. Heat sets most stains.