Your kid is behaving like an angel and playing contentedly, when all of a sudden you notice the stains on his clothing. Crayons! No wonder then he was happy coloring everything he could lay his hands on. What do you do now? Don’t panic. Here are a few measures you can undertake to remove crayon stains from clothes.
Removing stains from clothing is a tough job, and something most of us hate. Whether it’s ink, grass, or paint, removing stains from clothes through repeated washing can be cumbersome. Even crayon stains might not come off instantly, and clothing may require a few cycles of thorough washing before the stain completely vanishes. Apart from kids accidentally staining them on their own, your kid might have forgotten a few crayons in the pockets of his clothes, and when you remove your newly washed and dried clothes, you realize to your horror that all your clothes are now dyed in different colors! Here are a few tricks you can try that will help you get rid of those stubborn stains.
Removing Dry Crayon Stains
- If the crayon stain is still soft and fresh, put the clothes in the freezer for a few minutes. This will harden the crayon and you can scrape it out using a butter knife or the blunt side of a regular knife.
- For the remaining stain, take several sheets of paper towels and keep the stained area between them. Use a warm iron over them.
- The stains will get transferred to the paper towel. Every few minutes, use a fresh batch of paper towels so the stains get absorbed and come off easily.
- Get a fabric stain remover and treat the stained fabric patch with it. Blot using paper towel.
- If you do not have a stain remover, use fabric bleach (chlorine or oxygen, whichever is appropriate). Then wash and rinse like you always do with a laundry detergent.
- Let the clothes air dry.
Removing Melted Crayon Stains
You just opened the clothes dryer and see all your clothes have turned a different color altogether. Culprit? Your kid’s crayons! Here’s what you can do to salvage the situation.
- Use a butter knife to scrape off as much crayon as you can from the clothes. As described above, use several paper towels and blot the stain.
- Get a lubricant spray and spray well over the stained patch and let it work for 5 minutes. The lubricant should help in diluting the melted stain from your clothes.
- Next, apply a liquid dishwashing detergent or the regular laundry detergent over the area and rub it well into the stained patch with your hands.
- Wash the clothes in the washer using hot water.
- Do not use the dryer to dry the clothes. A better option would be to leave them to air dry.
- If at all you use the dryer, you need to clean it too. Spray lubricant on a soft rag or paper towels and wipe the insides of the dryer clean. Now take a handful of old rags and toss them in the dryer and run the dryer cycle once. This should take care that your next set of clothes doesn’t come out colored!
Tip: In both the above methods, if using bleach isn’t a viable option, add a cup of baking soda to the wash cycle. You may also have to run the wash cycle a few times over for the colors to fade.
Removing Stains from Carpet and Furnishings
- If the stain is still soft, scrape it with a butter knife. Alternatively, wrap an ice-cube in a cloth and press it over the stained area. This will dry the stain and scraping out will become easier.
- Spray a lubricant over the patch and let it sit for a few minutes. Now press the patch tightly using a paper towel or any rag. An old toothbrush will also work well. Scrape off as much crayon as you can.
- If you do not have a lubricant, rub liquid dishwashing detergent over the area and tamp over the patch a few times with paper towels or rags till the color gets absorbed.
- You may have to repeat the above steps a few times over till you get rid of the stains as much as possible.
If you have kids at home, you are bound to have crayons! Keep these stain removal tips in mind to effectively get rid of stubborn crayon stains. The trick is to get down to removing those stains as soon as you find they have messed up your clothes. If the garments are labeled “dry-clean only”, it is wise to get them cleaned from professional dry cleaners, after pointing out the stained patch. The more they remain on the fabric, the harder and deeper they will set in, and you may have a hard time getting rid of them.