Ice cream….what can’t it do? Never mind that it tastes amazing, it also helps to fix broken hearts. However, it’s not so great when your mint chocolate chip melts and splatters all over your sweater. Or maybe your kid thought the best time to give your leg a hug was when their hands were smeared with gelato. However that stain has ended up on your clothes, don’t panic: these marks aren’t forever. We’ve put together some tips on how to remove ice cream stains from clothes and get them looking as good as new in no time.
Ice cream can be a tough stain to get rid of. It has protein, fats and starch which means it enjoys burrowing deep into the clothing’s fibers and making its home there. A few wipes later and it might look like it’s gone, but trust us, you’ll soon start to see a brown or yellow ring appear where a blob of Neapolitan fell just moments ago. Before you start contemplating buying a new sweater, save your money and follow these tips instead.
No need to fear, stubborn ice cream stains are no match for the power of Persil®. This step-by-step guide explains how to remove ice cream stains from clothes:
- After you’ve gotten as much of the ice cream off the garment as possible, turn it inside out and rinse under cold or warm water to flush out as much of the stain as possible.
- Work some Persil® Advanced Clean Oxi+Odor Power laundry detergent into the stain, but first ensure you test it on a small area of the clothing to check for any adverse effects.
- Wash cold or warm with Persil® Advanced Clean Oxi+Odor Power laundry detergent. Its powerful formula means that it’s efficient at removing stains even at cold temperatures. A quick wash should be sufficient if you’re in a hurry.
- Take the garment out of the washing machine and see if the stain has gone. If it’s still there, repeat the process again, but whatever you do, make sure you don’t iron or put the clothes in the tumble dryer until the stain has totally disappeared.
Here are some more important tips when it comes to dealing with stubborn ice cream stains:
- Take action as soon as possible – a new stain is so much easier to get rid of than one that’s had time to soak in.
- Use soap if you don’t have laundry detergent – maybe you’ve run out or you’re not at home, but hand soap is better than nothing. Rub some into the stain until you’re able to get your hands on some Persil® liquid detergent.
- Treating old stains – if you find an old stain, treat it first with stain remover to loosen it before you load it into the washing machine so there’s more chance of it being washed out.
Though you now have a better idea of how to get rid of ice cream stains, unfortunately there are lots of different types of food stains and they won’t all respond as well if you use the guide meant for removing ice cream stains. Check out Persil® Stain Advisor articles for more stain removal tips tailored to specific foods.