With children now back at school, new uniforms are already being properly put through their paces.
Fresh shirts, sweaters, and pants that looked spotless on the first morning can come home a few days later with grass on the knees, pen on the sleeves, paint on the cuffs, and something from lunch down the front.
It is all fairly normal, but some of those stains are much easier to deal with if you get to them early. Putting everything straight through another hot wash is not always the best answer either, especially when the same uniform is already being washed several times a week.
According to Noor de Swart, founder and CEO of Super Label Store, spending a few minutes on the actual stain first can make quite a difference.
“Most school uniforms are being washed often enough already. If there is one patch of grass on the knee, you are better off dealing with that rather than washing the pants two or three times and hoping it eventually disappears. What you do first also depends quite a lot on what actually made the stain,” she says.
Mud and grass look similar on the knees, but treat them differently
Mud, oddly enough, is easier if you leave it alone for a bit. "Let it dry, then brush or scrape away whatever will come off easily. If you start rubbing while everything is still wet, you tend to just make a much larger muddy patch," de Swart explains.
Once the dry dirt is gone, rinse the remaining mark with cool or lukewarm water, and put a little liquid laundry detergent straight onto it. Leave that for about 20 minutes before washing.
Grass needs a little more attention. Rinse the green area in cool water and work some liquid detergent into it before the pants go anywhere near the washing machine.
“If it is a thicker fabric, you can use an old toothbrush, but I would not be too enthusiastic with it. You only need to work the detergent into the fibers. Scrub the knee for five minutes and you might remove the grass, but that bit of the pants can end up looking quite different from the other one,” she notes.
A ballpoint pen mark can get much bigger very quickly
Pen ink is probably one of the stains where rubbing is the worst first reaction. The expert suggests putting a clean cloth or an old towel underneath the mark and blotting at it instead. This also gives the ink somewhere to go as it starts coming out of the fabric.
For some ballpoint pen marks on washable clothing, a small amount of isopropyl alcohol can help. She recommends testing it on a hidden part first, then dabbing rather than soaking the stain. Move the cloth underneath around as it picks up the ink, otherwise you can end up putting some of it straight back again.
"A blazer is where I would be more cautious. You have the outside fabric, the lining, maybe a badge and different colored stitching all on the same item. Something that is absolutely fine on a white cotton school shirt is not automatically fine on a blazer. Have a look at the label first, and if it says dry clean only, I would leave it at that rather than finding out the hard way,” de Swart says.
What did they actually have for lunch?
There is not really such a thing as one treatment for a food stain. Something greasy needs a different approach from tomato sauce, berries or chocolate, so first remove whatever is still sitting on the clothing rather than rubbing it in with a cloth.
For grease, de Swart recommends putting a little dish soap directly onto the mark and leaving it for around ten or fifteen minutes before washing. You do not need loads of it.
Tomato sauce and fruit are better rinsed with cool water first, ideally from the back of the fabric if you can get to it.
And with chocolate, scrape away the solid part before doing much else. Cool water and detergent can then deal with what is left.
“Do have another look when the shirt comes out of the machine. Food stains can be quite deceptive when the fabric is wet and you think everything has gone, then it dries and you can see the mark again. I would treat it another time before putting it in the dryer,” she advises.
Paint is mostly about getting to it in time
A lot of the paint children use at school is washable and water-based, which makes things easier. While it is still wet, rinse the mark under cool water, and add a little laundry detergent before washing the uniform as normal.
Dried paint is more of a job. Scrape off what you can without pulling at the fabric and then treat what is left.
The type of paint matters here as well. Oil-based paint may need a specific remover, so if you are not sure what has come home on the sweater, it is worth finding out before putting three different cleaning products on it.
“If it is ordinary washable school paint, I would keep things simple to begin with. Water, detergent and getting to it before it has been sitting there all weekend will do a lot. Once paint has dried completely, you have made the job harder for yourself, unfortunately,” de Swart notes.
More detergent is not going to save every stain
"When something comes out of the washing machine still marked, putting more detergent in and washing it again feels like the obvious next move, but it's not always very useful," de Swart reveals.
Too much detergent can stay behind in clothing if it is not rinsed properly, while constantly using hotter washes will eventually start fading darker uniforms and wearing the fabric.
This matters with school clothes in particular because the same pants, skirts, and sweaters can be washed several times in one week.
Turning darker items inside out before they go in can help with some of the wear. Checking the pockets helps for a completely different reason. A forgotten tissue is irritating, but a ballpoint pen, crayon, or lip balm going through the machine is a much worse Sunday evening.
“Stains are always easier when you deal with them reasonably early. That does not mean you need to put a wash on the second your child gets home from school. Just do not leave a big grass or tomato stain screwed up in the laundry basket for three days and then expect the washing machine to do all the work,” de Swart adds.
Post courtesy https://superlabelstore.com/, who shared the expert advice.
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