Thanks for the Tips ----- Original Message ----- From: "Alberta Hall" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, October 15, 2009 12:05 PM Subject: [RecipesAndMore] laundry disasters
> > >> >>10 Laundry Disasters and How To Help Clothes Recover >>Solutions for the Worst Laundry Mistakes >> >>By >>Sarah Aguirre, >>About.com >>Housekeeping Guide >> >>1. Shrunken Sweaters. >> >>It may seem hopeless, but there is a tiny glimmer of a chance that you can >>still wear that sweater. It's worth a try to attempt to reshape a wet >>sweater >>to its original size. Add 2-3 tablespoonfuls of hair conditioner to a >>bucket >>of room temperature water. Put the sweater in the bucket to soak for about >>5 minutes. Lay the sweater on a clean dry towel and slowly and gently try >>to >>stretch the fibers and reshape the garment before allowing it to dry on >>the >>towel. >> >>2. Dried Stains. >> >>Once a stain has been dried, it's very hard to remove, but it is possible. >>Try repeating the steps for the individual stain. More than likely you'll >>need >>to soak the stain, or use a more aggressive stain remover. On white >>clothes, >>try using lemon juice and placing the garment in the sun. Both the lemon >>juice >>and the sun will work as bleaching agents. Be sure to rinse the clothing >>thoroughly before rewashing. >> >>3. Dingy Whites. >> >>White fabrics can become yellowed or grayed and dingy. For gray and dingy >>whites try the triple soak. Soak the whites first in a solution of a >>bucketful >>of water and 2 tablespoons of liquid dish soap. Next rinse out the whites >>and soak in a solution of 2 tablespoons of ammonia and a bucketful of >>water. >>Next, rinse out the whites, and soak in a bucket of warm water and 2 >>tablespoons of vinegar. Rinse thoroughly and dry. This soaking method will >>leave your >>whites bright and clean. >> >>4. Wrinkled Clothes. >> >>If clothes have been neglected in the dryer for too long they are probably >>wrinkled. To smooth out the wrinkles, put the load back in the dryer with >>a >>damp >>towel (for a medium sized load) or a damp sock (for a small load). >> >>5. Pink Whites. >> >>A red sock in the washer with your whites can leave you seeing >>rose-colored >>laundry. To try to fix this problem you'll need Rit Color Remover. This >>product >>works wonders on white laundry that had dye transfer on it. The Rit Color >>Remover can also be effective at removing dye on some colored or patterned >>backgrounds, >>although you run the risk of having the original color or pattern of the >>garment damaged. >> >>6. Crayons in the Dryer. >> >>I've got quite a bit of experience with this one. I'll never forget the >>first time I looked in the dryer to see streaks of red crayon melted >>around >>the >>drum. To get rid of it, start with scraping off as much of the wax as you >>can. I like using a credit card because it doesn't scratch the drum, but >>does >>a good job of removing dried on wax. Depending on how tough the wax is to >>remove, you might need to use a blow dryer to remove the wax. Hold the >>dryer >>6 inches away from the drum. It will heat up the wax, allowing you to wipe >>it away. Next, you'll need some WD-40. Spray it on a cloth and wipe at the >>waxed >>areas until the wax is gone. For your final step, use a mild detergent >>like >>dish soap or an all-purpose cleaner and warm water to do a final wipe down >>of the drum. >> >>7. Stickers Washed and Dried. >> >>Sometimes a "Good Job" sticker gets left on clothes as they go through the >>laundry cycle. A sticker that has been washed and dried, congeals and >>becomes >>very difficult to remove. Use an ice cube to freeze the stained area, and >>try to scrape away as much of the sticker as possible with a spoon. Apply >>baby >>or cooking oil to the sticker area and try to scrape away more of the >>stain >>as it loosens. Rinse the area thoroughly with a little dish soap and warm >>water >>before applying a stain remover gel and rewashing. >> >>8. Mildew Smells or Stains. >> >>Did you forget about the clothes in the washer and now they have a sour >>smell? If the clothes smell, but aren't stained by pinpoint sized dots of >>mildew, >>you may simply be able to rewash them with a helping of bleach for whites, >>or color-safe bleach for colors. If you indeed have mildew stains, washing >>with >>chlorine bleach will remove the stains from white clothing. For colored >>clothing use a mixture of color-safe oxygen bleach (1 teaspoon) , and >>hydrogen >>peroxide (1 cup) to sponge the stained areas before rinsing thoroughly and >>rewashing. Clothes may also benefit from soaking in a borax solution. >> >>9. A Pen Explodes. >> >>If a pen found its way into your laundry, it can wreak a lot of havoc >>before >>it's found. Whether you realize there are ink stains after clothes are >>washed, >>or after they are dried, the steps are the same. >> >>The first solution to try is rubbing alcohol. Place the clothing on top of >>a >>clean white towel. Be sure to test in a hidden spot before applying >>rubbing >>alcohol to the permanent ink stain. Blot rubbing alcohol onto the stain. >>The >>towel underneath will become wet and discolored from the ink. Be sure to >>move >>the garment to a clean dry section of the towel as this happens. Continue >>until no more ink stain can be removed. Make sure you rinse the stained >>area >>completely free of the rubbing alcohol. Next try fingernail polish >>remover. >>Blot in the same way as you did with the rubbing alcohol, moving the >>stained >>area to a clean dry section of a towel as the ink stain is removed. Rinse >>thoroughly. >> >>Honestly, this will work much more effectively if the clothes haven't been >>dried, but it can still work on set in stains, it will just take a lot of >>hoping >>and patience. >> >>10. Washed Tissues. >> >>If a tissue has been inadvertently washed, leaving shreds of tissue all >>over >>your clothing, the easiest solution is to pick out the biggest clumps you >>can >>see before putting the clothing in the dryer. The smaller clumps will get >>caught in the lint filter where you can remove them after the drying >>cycle. >>The >>more clumps you can remove before the clothing goes into the dryer, the >>better. Once the clothing is dry, shake out the garments to remove any >>loose >>pieces. >> >> Betty and Tisha, the "Southern" snorter > > Alberta and my leading Lady > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Access the Recipes And More list archives at: http://www.mail-archive.com/recipesandmore%40googlegroups.com/ Visit the group home page at: http://groups.google.com/group/RecipesAndMore -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
