After taking down our Christmas tree, our clothes have little drops of pine sap in multiple places. Is this considered a stain, or can I simply wash them with detergent?

Christmas trees are a wonderful Christmas tradition, but unfortunately pine sap is a very difficult stain to remove with typical laundry treatments. I would recommend trying to treat the stains directly with De-Solv-it® or Goo Gone®, which you can find at hardware stores. I would not expect a problem with using these products on the items, but I would first check for colorfastness by applying a drop of the products to a hidden part of the garments, rinse, and blot dry. If there is no color change, spray or rub a little into the sap and then wash with detergent in the hottest water temperature allowed on the care label. Allow to air dry and check for success. Air drying is very important since the heat from the dryer can permanently set sap stains. In order to do everything you can to increase your chances of success, you may need to repeat the treatment to fully remove the stains. This may include increasing the length of time you pretreat the stains.

Christmas wasn’t meant to be stressful, but with so much to do—get the shopping done (find the lowest price!), plan the menu, deliver beautifully wrapped homemade gifts, write and send a family greeting, and hurry!!—it often ends up that way.  And now it’s finally here!  Hopefully you can relax a little and enjoy the day.  Everyone has different traditions for how to spend Christmas--whether you find yourself surrounded by a crowd of little cousins running around bursting with excitement, curled up by the fire watching “White Christmas”, or going out for a winter’s hike or bike ride, I hope this day finds you happy and healthy, with many blessings to count!

And if you have found your way to the blog because Uncle Bill just knocked over a glass of red wine and you need some stain removal advice right away, expert help is as close as your phone.  You can either call the Clorox Holiday Stain Hotline at (800) Stain-411 for tips on how to remove a variety of common holiday stains, including red wine.  Or, smart phone users can download the free Clorox MyStain App for both at-home and on-the-go stain removal advice.  That way you can get back to the party, or the movie, or thinking of new lyrics for “White Christmas”, or whatever you were doing, and not have to worry about getting that stain out.

Speaking of “White Christmas”, it’s always hard to update a classic, but changing the ending to “And may all your bleachables be white” would be quite an improvement, if you ask me!  Merry Christmas, everyone!

Happy Black Friday! Between fueling up for midnight shopping and cleaning up Thanksgiving dinner, I bet there were some gravy spills in the last 24 hours. To help you tackle this tricky stain, I wanted to provide my favorite treatment for gravy stains. Gravy is a complex stain with grease, starch and colorant that requires lots of attention. To start. scrape off excess gravy with a dull knife; blot gently with a paper towel or cloth; cover with cornstarch to help absorb the grease; brush off. Blot with cold water and liquid dish detergent then rinse.

FROM HERE, IF YOUR STAINED ITEM IS WHITE:

1. Rub any residual stain gently with Clorox^® Bleach Pen^® Gel prior to laundering


2. Wash immediately in the hottest water recommended using detergent and ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach


3. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

IF YOUR STAINED ITEM HAS COLOR:

1. Again, start by scraping off excess gravy with a dull knife; blot gently with a paper towel or cloth; sprinkle with cornstarch to help absorb excess grease, then brush the cornstarch off


2. Next apply liquid dish detergent to the stain, and then rinse


3. Then apply good liquid laundry detergent and rub into stain.  Wash immediately in hottest water recommended using detergent and Clorox^®2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster


4. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

How do I remove cranberry sauce stains from my clothing?

Cranberries and cranberry sauce are holiday staples. Cranberries are festive fruits, but their juice and sauce stains have an intense color with skins, seeds and sugars to be concerned about. Rinse the stained area with cold water. Do NOT use bar soap as it may set the stain.

FROM HERE, IF YOUR STAINED ITEM IS WHITE:

1. Apply Clorox^® Bleach Pen^® Gel to the stained area immediately before laundering.


2. Wash in the hottest water recommended on the care label using detergent and 3/4 cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach.


3. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

IF YOUR STAINED ITEM HAS COLOR:

1. Again, rinse the stained area with cold water. Do not use bar soap as it may set the stain.


2. Apply Liquid Clorox2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster directly to the stain and rub in.


3. Wait 3-5 minutes, then wash immediately in hottest water recommended using detergent and Clorox2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster.


4. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

How do you get sticky candy out of clothes?

Happy Halloween! This is the one downside to trick-or-treating – plenty of sticky candy laundry. You didn’t say what type of sticky candy, but I’m guessing it is chewing gum. For that, you can use ice cubes to freeze the gum and then gently scrape away the hardened chunks. Just put the ice directly onto the gum—the ice will melt as you hold it on the gum so plan on using multiple ice cubes—enough to harden the gum. If you can’t scrape all of it away, then pretreat what is left with a little DeSolvIt or Goo Gone, which you can find at hardware stores. You should first test these solvents for colorfastness (apply a drop to a hidden part of the garment, rinse, and blot dry) to be sure the products are safe for the fabric. If there is no color change, spray or rub a little onto the gum and then wash with detergent in the hottest water allowed (check the care label). Allow to air dry and then check for success.  You can also use ice to jumpstart removal of other sticky candies such as tootsie rolls, lollipops, and salt water taffy.  Any remaining stain can be pretreated with liquid Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster before washing in the hottest water recommended on the care label using detergent and more Clorox2^®.  Hopefully this is helpful—please let me know if you have any other questions, and thank you for writing!

How do I remove a pumpkin pie stain from my clothing?

Pumpkin pie is a holiday favorite, but this stain has lots of dairy products and sugars, which complicate the removal process. The first step is to quickly scrape away any excess stain and rinse in cool water.

FROM HERE, IF YOUR STAINED ITEM IS WHITE:

1. Rub stain gently with Clorox^® Bleach Pen^® Gel immediately before laundering.


2. Wash immediately in warm or hot water using detergent and ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach.


3. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

IF YOUR STAINED ITEM HAS COLOR:

1. Again, quickly scrape away any excess stain and rinse in cool water


2. Then apply Liquid Clorox^® 2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster directly to the stain and rub in. Wait 3-5 minutes, then wash in the hottest water recommended using a good enzyme detergent and Clorox^® 2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster


3. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

It is officially fall! With the change of seasons come a change of weathers, and a cool weather favorite has always been hot chocolate! Chocolate has fine particles and milk proteins that can make this a difficult stain to remove

1. Soak fabric in cold water and good liquid laundry detergent for about 30 minutes to help loosen the protein part of the stain

From here, if your stained item is white:

1. Rub chocolate stain gently with Clorox^® Bleach Pen^® Gel immediately before laundering


2. Wash immediately in warm water with detergent and ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach


3. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

If your stained item is colored or contains spandex:

1. Again, soak fabric in cold water and good liquid laundry detergent for about 30 minutes to help loosen the protein part of the stain


2. Then apply Liquid Clorox^® 2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster directly to the stain and rub in.  Wash immediately in warm water using detergent and Clorox^® 2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster.


3. Air dry the item and check to make sure the stain is completely removed. If stain remains, repeat steps above.

Q:  How do you get rid of a gravy stain?

A:  Gravy is tricky because it is combination stain—you have both a greasy and colored component that needs to be dealt with, and it’s best to work on the greasy part first.  Start by scraping away excess gravy with a dull knife to minimize the amount of stain you need to treat.  Next, apply liquid dishwashing detergent directly to the stain and let it soak in.  Wait 10 minutes, and then rinse with a little warm water.  Now you’ll want to pretreat it again, and what product to use depends on whether the item with the stain is white or has color.

For white bleachable items (note that you should avoid bleaching items made with wool, silk, mohair, leather, and spandex regardless of their color) pretreat with Clorox® Bleach Pen® Gel.  Use the soft scrubber tip to apply a little of the gel to the remaining stain, and then wash immediately in the hottest water recommended on the care label using detergent and ¾ cup Clorox® Regular-Bleach.  After washing, air dry the item and check for success.  Residual oil can be hidden on a damp or wet item, so it’s important to keep it out of a hot dryer—this avoids heat setting any remaining stain that could otherwise be completely removed with a second treatment.

For colored items, after the liquid dishwashing detergent pretreatment step described above, pretreat again with Clorox2® Stain Fighter and Color Booster.  Apply a little to the stain, rub in, and wait 5- 10 minutes (but don’t let it dry on the fabric).  Next, wash the item in the hottest water recommended on the care label using detergent and more Clorox2®.  Be sure to air dry the item and check for success—repeat the treatment if a little oil still remains.

Does anyone else have stubborn stains?

Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite holidays, and when I looked at the calendar this morning I realized it really is right around the corner! However you spend it, your Valentine’s Day is bound to be full of love, smooches and boxes of chocolate. But we all know that smooches from your red lipstick and ooey gooey chocolate squares can leave a little more mess than you bargained for. Check out our infographics below for some fun facts about your smooches and chocolate treats to get you in the loved-up spirit.

And most importantly, don’t forget to visit us if you find yourself with some lover’s day stains to clean up on the 15^th! 

[caption id="attachment_1450" align="alignleft" width="576" caption="I love a box of chocolates from my hubby on Valentine’s Day, and just like most North Americans milk chocolate is my favorite! How much chocolate do you think you’ll eat this year?"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1466" align="alignleft" width="576" caption="Some women can pull of red lips, but I’m more of a rose girl. Either way, I think the stat above is a good reminder for all the husbands across America! How many of you will be getting a goodbye kiss every morning?"][/caption]

Q: I have red wine and sauce stains on my cloth napkins and tablecloths.  What would be the proper ratio of water to Clorox® Regular-Bleach for a soak in a bucket (not machine)?

A:  The proper ratio is 1/4 cup Clorox® Regular-Bleach per gallon of water.  Fully submerge the items for 5 minutes, and then drain the soaking solution before washing the items in the hottest water recommended on the care label using detergent + 3/4 cup Clorox® Regular-Bleach.  Air dry the items to make sure the stains are all the way out.  This is particularly a good idea for food stains because often they can be "combination stains" that require multiple approaches to get all the way out. 

You mentioned sauce stains – these can contain an oily component and a colored component, and it's best to treat the oily component first.  In that case, try rubbing a little liquid dishwashing detergent onto the stain first.  Wait for 5 minutes, rinse the stain with a little warm water and then do the bleach soak. Red wine, on the other hand, comes out beautifully with just the bleach treatment.

Do any other readers have some post-holiday stains that are proving difficult to remove?