I washed a new white top with spandex in it with light colors and now it is grey. How do I get it back to white?

Your issue is dye transfer after just one cycle. Unfortunately, the fact that your top contains spandex means you won't be able to use a bleach and water soaking solution to remove the dye transfer since spandex (along with wool, silk, mohair, and leather) should never be bleached. However, you can give RIT Color Remover a try. You can usually find this product at drug and even hardware stores – it's a reducing bleach that is safe for spandex and often is very helpful at removing dye transfer. Follow the manufacturer's instructions, and it should work.

For ongoing good cleaning so the shirt doesn't get dingy, try soaking your white items with spandex for 8 hours or overnight with Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster added to 2 gallons hot water. Following the soak time, drain the soaking solution and then wash the items in the hottest water recommended on the care label. If you can, wash them separately or in a load with just white cotton/spandex items. I get lots of questions about these items after people have had them for a while – they get pretty dingy over time, especially if they are washed in cold water with a low quality detergent. Using Clorox2^® on a regular basis (and the presoak whenever possible) will really help keep these items white, especially if you can wash the items in hot water.

I am potty training and my children seem to have accidents. It can stink pretty bad and is hard to get the smell out in the laundry. It's not just in the underwear but in the blue jeans or pants they are wearing as well. I don't have an issue bleaching the underwear, but obviously don't want to bleach jeans or colored pants. What can I do to get rid of the smell?

Oh the memories… I noticed from your question that you said you are potty training children, so it sounds like you may have twins—it was a big enough challenge for me training one child at a time! I have some good news for you—more often than not, denim blue jeans can be safely laundered with Clorox^® Regular-Bleach. You can use the bleachability test to check first. Just add 2 teaspoons Clorox^® Regular-Bleach (or if you are using New Concentrated Clorox^® Regular-Bleach use 1 ½ teaspoons bleach) to ¼ cup water and apply a drop of that solution to a hidden part of the blue jeans (like inside the pocket facing, or the inside hem). Wait one minute then blot dry—no color change means you can safely bleach the blue jeans! You may also find that if the jeans fade slightly where the drop of test solution was applied, the color change is minimal and something you can live with. You can also use this test to confirm bleachability of the other colored pants—just don’t bother testing leggings or other pants that have spandex in them (check the care label) since spandex will yellow when bleached. Surprisingly, khaki pants are also often bleachable, just be sure to check first because it varies from brand to brand.

For pants that can’t be safely laundered with Clorox Regular-Bleach, unfortunately there isn’t an alternative product that sanitizes any and all colored laundry. To get the pants as clean as possible, first rinse away the solids prior to laundering. Select a hot wash temperature, and be sure to add the recommended amount of a good detergent. Adding Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster along with your detergent will further improve cleaning. Finally, consider washing the pants alone to limit germ transfer to other items in the load. You may also want to try presoaking with Clorox2^®—fill the cap to line 1 and add to 2 gallons hot water. After rinsing away any solids, fully submerge the pants in the soaking solution and let soak for 1 hour. Drain the soaking solution, and then wash in hot water using detergent and Clorox2^®.

Of course you can also limit your kids to wearing only bleachable pants until they are potty trained!

The perfect holiday gift—it should be personal, one-of-a-kind, and not outrageously expensive. Oh, and of course you want the recipient to totally LOVE it!  Well, I’ve got a gift suggestion that could be all that: a beautiful striped scarf you customize yourself with my favorite product, Clorox^® Regular-Bleach. It’s so simple to make--an inexpensive scarf (both cotton and rayon work well) is folded into pleats, partially dipped in a bleach solution, and then rinsed with hydrogen peroxide to stop the bleaching action. Ready to try this easy DIY project at home?  Here’s a list of supplies and step-by-step instructions.  Send me a picture of your beautiful creation—no two scarves will turn out the same!

Materials

1. Scarf in a solid color, made of cotton or rayon


2. Clorox^® Regular-Bleach  –or–  New Concentrated Clorox^® Regular-Bleach


3. Large quart-sized glass measuring cup or 6 cup plastic bowl


4. Measuring spoons


5. Rubber bands


6. 3-4 quarts of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide


7. Plastic dishpan for rinsing

Instructions

• Fold the scarf evenly into pleats. Try to make each fold the same size, and if you’d like the ends of the scarf to match, be sure you have an odd number of folds.


• Secure half of the scarf with rubber bands (this helps keep any fringe from falling into the bleach solution.


• Pour the hydrogen peroxide into the dishpan; set aside (but within easy reach).


• Measure 1 quart of water into the large glass measuring cup or plastic bowl, and add 4 tablespoons (¼ cup) Clorox^® Regular-Bleach; stir gently to mix.  (Note:  if you are using New Concentrated Clorox^® Regular-Bleach, use 3 tablespoons bleach per quart of water.)


• Now the fun part: dip the scarf halfway into the bleach solution and hold it there for a few seconds, then gently dip it up and down so the bleach solution reaches all the folds.


• After 15 seconds, lift the scarf out of the bleach solution, carefully holding it over the bleach solution to catch drips.


• Dip the bleached portion of the scarf completely into the dishpan with the hydrogen peroxide and swirl it around for at least 15 seconds.


• Remove the rubber bands and add the entire scarf to the hydrogen peroxide.


• Pour off the hydrogen peroxide and rinse the scarf very thoroughly.


• Air dry.

Other considerations

--The more pleats you fold, the more stripes you will get. A 3% hydrogen peroxide is sold in quarts at larger retailers like Target. You can also find smaller sizes at your local drugstore or pharmacy.

--Always avoid bleaching wool, silk, mohair, leather, and spandex. Don’t try this to refresh an older scarf unless you know for sure it is cotton or rayon!

I just noticed foundation all over my white dress. It has been there for more than a month. Can I still remove it?

Make-up stains typically have both a color and an oily component, and it’s good to work on the oily component first by pretreating stains with a little liquid dishwashing detergent (like Dawn). Apply a little directly to the stain and rub it in. Wait 5 minutes, and then wash the dress depending on the fiber content (check the care label) using one of the following methods:

1. For white bleachable fabric (avoid bleaching wool, silk, mohair, leather, and spandex), wash in hot water with detergent and  ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach. Air dry the dress and check for success—you want to keep the dress out of the dryer so you don’t heat set heavy make-up stains that would come all the way out with a second treatment.


2. If your dress contains any spandex:  wash in hot water with detergent and Clorox2 Stain Fighter and Color Booster. Air dry and check for success—repeat the treatment if necessary for complete removal.

It’s hard to give generic advice without knowing more about the dress. I would hate to find out the white dress you are asking about is a silk wedding dress—for that I would recommend dry cleaning. If this is the case, when you take the dress to the cleaners show them the makeup stain so they can pretreat it.

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.

Is there a good way to get rid of underarm yellowing or do I just need to throw the shirt away? Is there any way to prevent that?

Underarm stains are highly individualized. Each person’s body chemistry, combined with her choice of deodorant, make for a truly unique stain. Pre-treating the stain by applying a little liquid laundry detergent directly to the arm pit area every time you wash a shirt is a great way to keep these stains under control. Applying Clorox^® Bleach Pen Gel immediately before washing in detergent + ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach is also a great way to get the stains out. For some men and women, switching to a different brand of antiperspirant and starting over with new t-shirts, may be what it takes to get these stains under control. It really does vary from person to person!

My children got some chocolate candy from their Halloween loot all over some colored clothing. How should I treat this?

Chocolate stains are difficult to remove because they contain so many different components. There can be fats and dairy, as well as fine cocoa particles. Treating these combination stains with several treatment steps is a good way to successfully get rid of the stain.

1. Begin by scraping off any hardened chocolate if possible.


2. Pre-treat the stain with the new Clorox2^® Stain Fighter Gel Pen (you could also use a good liquid laundry detergent that contains enzymes), apply a little of the gel directly to the stain and gently work it in. Wait 10 minutes, so the enzymes and surfactants can begin breaking up the protein part of the stain and solubilize any fats, then rinse the stain with a little cool water.


3. Next apply Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster directly to the stain. Rub it in and wait 5 minutes, then wash with detergent + Clorox2^® in the hottest water recommended on the care label.


4. Air dry the items! This is important so you don't heat-set a stubborn stain, so you can re-treat if necessary.

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!

My son bought two new white shirts and assumed he could use bleach. They are now yellow. What can he do?

Let me guess--the shirts are cotton, but also contain a small amount of spandex. Or maybe they are polyester sport shirts that also include spandex. Unfortunately spandex will yellow when laundered with any product that includes sodium hypochlorite (the bleach active in Clorox^® Regular-Bleach), and now your son has first-hand experience with why spandex is on the "avoid bleaching" list, along with wool, silk, leather, and mohair.  I wish I had better news for you, but the color shift is permanent. I think it's terrific that your son is doing his own laundry, and that he uses bleach for his whites--now he has a very good reason to incorporate checking care labels to into his laundry routine. Thanks for writing, and I'm sorry I couldn't have been more helpful.

What is the best way to remove coffee stains?

Hopefully your coffee-stained item is white and made of a fabric that you can safely bleach--you should always avoid bleaching fabrics that are made with wool, silk, mohair, leather, and spandex.  If your item is not on that list, then, proceed as follows.

1. For localized stains, rub stain gently with Clorox^® Bleach Pen^® Gel just before laundering.


2. Or, for large spills, pre-soak the entire item in a solution of ¼ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach per gallon of water. Submerge the garment and soak for 5 minutes.


3. Wash immediately in the hottest water recommended by the care label using detergent and ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach


4. Air dry the item and check for success—larger stains may require an additional treatment for complete removal.

If your item includes any of the fibers on the “avoid bleaching” list, or is colored, then you should treat it as follows:

Apply Liquid Clorox^® 2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster and rub into stain.  Wait 3-5 minutes, then wash immediately in the hottest water recommended using detergent and Clorox^® 2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster.

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