3 Ways to Naturally Remove Stains

Summer provides additional opportunities for dirty clothes — stains from mud, dirt, grass and food — but let’s be realistic. Stains happen 24/7, 365 days a year. Stains don’t know which season it is or how little time you have, or may not have, to treat them. When stains happen, you need a handy set of tips and tricks to combat them.

1.         Act now

            The first tool in your stain-fighting arsenal is time. Treat stains quickly because the two things which makes stains permanent is time and heat. It’s not always realistic to drop everything to clean a stain. But at least wash out the stain quickly and then let the clothing sit in salt water until you can return to it later. The salt naturally starts to break down the stain and keeps the fabric from drying out. Make sure you completely remove the stain before drying the fabric.

2.            Vinegar is your best friend

            Vinegar works well on most stains. Simply rinse the stain; then soak in vinegar and water. Like magic — presto! — the stain disappears.

            If you have a protein stain, such as blood, eggs or meat juices, you’ll use a different method. Rinse the stain in a lot of cold water. Sometimes this removes the stain and you don’t need to go past this step. If it’s a stubborn stain, soak the clothing in cold salt water. Do not use hot water as it will set the stain into the clothing. After soaking, rub with a mild soap and rinse again in cold water. Launder as usual once the stain is gone.

3.            You’re very own DIY stain remover

            Lemons are pleasant in iced tea or water. They also have tremendous stain-fighting power. Lemon essential oil works as a natural stain remover. It can corrode plastic, so keep your mixture in a glass spray bottle. Here’s a simple and effective recipe:

• 1 cup vinegar
• 10 drops lemon essential oil

To use: Combine vinegar and lemon essential oil in a glass spray bottle. Spray onto stain, soak and wash as usual.

There you have it! Easy and natural tips to keep stains from ruining your clothes — or your day.

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