Acids：Act quickly so that acid cannot damage the cloth. Sprinkle the stain with baking soda, dampen with water and allow to stand till bubbling stops. Rinse well in warm water. Alternatively, hold the dampened stain over an open bottle of household ammonia so that the fumes can neutralize the acid. Rinse well.

Adhesive Tape：Sponge or soak the dry fabric stain with a suitable laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover) or in a grease solvent or kerosene. Kerosene will make the cloth oily, so if used, must be followed by washing in warm soapy water.

Alcohol：Always treat these as soon as possible. Often stains are almost colourless at first, but turn brown on standing, washing and ironing. Fresh stains can be removed by sponging several times with warm water. If there is any mark left, pour glycerine on the dampened stain, rub lightly between the hands and leave for half an hour. Rinse in warm water.

More stubborn stains may be sponged on dry fabric with equal quantities of methylated spirits (wood alcohol) and ammonia (test on colours first) or laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover). Rinse well in warm water. If any stain is left on white material, a laundry bleach may be used. Choose and use your bleach according to instructions given earlier.

Alkali’s：such as washing soda and ammonia, or cuticle remover, may destroy colour and rot material. Rinse at once in equal quantities of vinegar and water. Rinse well in warm water. If colour has been affected this cannot be corrected.

Ball-Point Ink：See under Ink for stain removal suggestions

Baby Oil：Rub some dishwash liquid into the stain, leave for 10-15 minutes, then hot wash (60-65°C) using your normal laundry detergent. If any stain remains, repeat the process. For unwashable fabrics or articles, see under Butter.

Bleach：Treat immediately in copious amounts of cold water. For chlorine bleach, add 1 Tbsp. vinegar in each 600 mls water. If the colour has been removed by the bleach, it cannot readily be restored, but try holding in fumes from an open bottle of ammonia.

Blood：If fresh, sponge with cool salted water (1tsp : 600 ml water) and rinse with clear water.
Should stain persist, soak in a diaper wash/sanitiser from the supermarket that contains sodium percarbonate - read the diaper wash/sanitiser label for the chemical make-up of the product (may state sodium carbonate peroxohydrate or oxygenated bleach). Sodium percarbonate is derived from a manufacturing process of concentrated solutions of sodium carbonate and hydrogen peroxide (sodium carbonate peroxohydrate) therefore you could try using the hydrogen peroxide suggestion first. Or you can try any of the following suggestions, and they are in no particular order… Dilute hydrogen peroxide (1 part : 9 parts water).

Blue: Rinse fresh marks in cold water. Soak any more difficult stains in a solution 1 Tbsp. vinegar in 1200 ml of warm water. Wash as usual.

Boot Polish :Sponge with a laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover) or with dry cleaning fluid.

Butter, Cream & Fatty Stains
Wash in warm sudsy water if a washable fabric. If not, sponge dry fabric with a grease solvent, e.g. laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover) or dry cleaning fluid.

Common household salt can be used to “Set Dyes” at a rate of quarter to half a cup per wash tub load. Leave to soak half an hour, rinse, then hang to dry. Salt is a common additive to Laundry Powder formulations. Among it’s many uses, salt minimises the risk of “running dyes” when laundering garments.

Egg：Scrape away as much as possible. Sponge with lukewarm water. Never use hot water, as heat hardens the stain. If this does not succeed, spread the stain with a paste of cream of tartar and water, adding a crushed aspirin to the paste. Leave for 20 - 30 minutes. Rinse well in warm water. OR use a diaper wash/sanitiser container sodium percarbonate.

Fruit Juices & Berries： Fresh stains are easy to remove, but once dry, they are very obstinate. Treat with cool water first and follow up, if necessary, by soaking in a chlorinated laundry bleach or a diaper wash/sanitiser container sodium percarbonate. Rinse.

White cottons and linens may be stretched over a basin and boiling water poured through from a height. Any remaining stain may be removed with chlorinated laundry bleach.

Coloured fabrics or washable silk, etc., may be soaked in a diaper wash/sanitiser container sodium percarbonate or a warm borax solution (1 Tbsp. : 1 c water), or covered with a paste of cream of tartar and warm water. Leave half and hour or until stain goes, then rinse well.

For persistent stains apply equal quantities of methylated spirits (wood alcohol) and ammonia. Rinse well after treatment. This method is safe for all fabrics, except triacetate (e.g. Tricel). Dilute mixture with an equal quantity of water for fabrics with fugitive dyes. Old stains may be softened in glycerine before treatment. Damp stain, apply glycerine, leave 1 - 2 hours, then add a few drops of vinegar, leave 5 - 10 minutes and rinse well.

Ice Cream, Milk & Cream
For washable materials, first sponge with lukewarm water, then wash as usual. If the material is not washable, sponge with dry cleaning fluid then with cold water.

Indelible Pencil
Do not use water as this spreads the stain. Sponge over a pad of soft cloth, using equal quantities of methylated spirits (wood alcohol) and household ammonia (test coloured fabrics first). Should the colours run, try methylated spirits (wood alcohol) alone. Rinse or sponge with warm water.

Very light scorch marks can often be removed by immediate washing with your usual laundry product, followed by a day in the sun. Alternatively, sponge with 1 Tbsp. borax in 1 c warm water.

Light scorch marks on white materials can be treated with hydrogen peroxide. Dampen a scrap of white cotton cloth with hydrogen peroxide and lay it on the mark. Cover with a clean dry cloth, then press with a medium warm iron. If the peroxide soaks through the top cloth, move to a dry position. Repeat the treatment until the stain is removed. Rinse well in warm water.

Light scorch marks on any fabric (test colours first) may be treated by sponging with diluted hydrogen peroxide to which a few drops of ammonia have been added. Rinse well in warm water. (Instructions for dilution under directions for using bleaches).

Shoe Cleaners
Scrape off any excess with a dull knife. Shoe creams can frequently be removed from washable materials by washing with your usual laundry product.

If this is not successful, treat washable fabrics with glycerine. Pour on to the stain, rub lightly between the hands, leave for half an hour, then wash or rinse in warm water.

On unwashable fabrics or for very stubborn marks, sponge with equal quantities of methylated spirits (wood alcohol) and household ammonia. (Test on coloured fabrics first). Then sponge with warm water.

Silly Putty
Scrape off the excess with a blunt knife, then apply a warm to hot solution made up of 1 part D’limonene, 1 part dishwash liquid, 10 parts water (read our notes on each product at this link). Massage into the putty, and use absorbent towelling to absorb the “gunk”. You may need to repeat this. Finally rinse with warm water and let dry naturally.
Or Crayola recommend that you Scrape the excess Silly Putty with a dull knife or metal spoon. Spray with WD-40® (car part lubricant) and let stand a few minutes. Again scrape excess Silly Putty with knife or spoon, and re-spray with WD-40®. Wipe stain with cotton balls. If any stain remains, saturate a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol, blot the stain and rinse. Wipe any remaining residue or remaining stain with a damp sponge or cloth moistened with liquid dishwashing detergent.

Soft Drinks
Pre-treat dry fabric with a laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover) prior to washing with a quality laundry product in the usual way. Alternative treatment: sponge with equal quantities of methylated spirits (wood alcohol) and water. Old or obstinate stains may be softened in glycerine before treatment as above.

Soot & Smoke
First treat with absorbent powder, then wash. For unwashable articles sponge with dry cleaning fluid or other grease solvent, followed by airing to remove smell of smoke.

For carpets, mix solvent to a paste with cornflour, talcum or french chalk. Apply thickly - leave to dry, then brush or vacuum off. Repeat if necessary. Use absorbent powder only on rubber backed carpeting. Or use a spray-on dry cleaner.

Soy Sauce
Dry the soya sauce-stained area. Mix together 3 parts dishwash liquid with 1 part of a D’Limonene based product (read our notes on each product at this link). Soak the stained area in this solution for 10-15 minutes. After the soak time, rinse in water as hot as is suitable for the fabric, then wash as usual, but preferrably with a Laundry Liquid. This treatment may require repeating.

Tar & Asphalt
Scrape away as much as possible with a dull knife. Sponge with Jeyes fluid and water (1 part Jeyes to 3 of water) or pre-treat with a laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover) then wash with a quality laundry product, rinse in warm water.

If this is not successful on washable materials, rub Vaseline or lard into the stain. Leave for half an hour, then wash in hot soapy water.

For unwashable materials the stain will be very difficult. Sponge repeatedly with dry cleaning fluid. If the mark still persists, rub with Vaseline, leave for half an hour, then dip in dry cleaning fluid. If possible, finish by sponging with a solution made from a good quality laundry liquid, starting well to the outside of the stain.

Tarnish
Metallic stains from belts, jewellery, etc., sometimes stain clothes. Sponge with vinegar, lemon juice or 10% solution acetic acid (check synthetics first).

For tarnished metallic fabrics, e.g. lame, if practicable, boil in salt water (2 Tbsp. to 600 ml). Not suitable for plastics. Otherwise, sponge with methylated spirits (wood alcohol) or dry cleaning fluid.

Tobacco
For stubborn tobacco stains, first try pouring glycerine over the stain. Rub lightly between the hands, or pre-treat the dry fabric with a laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover), leave for half an hour then wash in the usual way. If this is not successful, use sodium thiosulphate as directed for iodine stains.

Tomato Juice, Relish or Chutney
Sponge thoroughly with cold water first. Pour glycerine over, rub lightly between the hands and leave for half an hour. Or, pre-treat the dry fabric with a laundry pre-soak (spot stain remover), leave for half an hour then wash in the usual way. Rinse in warm water. Remove any remaining stain with a chlorinated laundry bleach or a diaper wash/sanitiser container sodium percarbonate, as directed.

Twink (Whiteout) (Liquid Paper) (Liquid Correction Fluid)
Purchase some Spray & Wipe from your supermarket, and use concentrated on the stain. Most Spray & Wipe formula’s contain a solvent which will dissolve the liquid paper. OR Try a little gasoline on the stain, with some good absorbent paper or old cloth behind it. Then use some dishwash liquid or a good quality laundry liquid to wash out the gasoline. OR Purchase some xylene, or toluene, these are some of the solvents used in making the stuff. Use as if using the gasoline. These are stocked by gasoline companies and you may be able to request a small sample. Always test an inconspicuous piece of material before proceeding.