There are certain clothing items in our home that hold a special place in my heart and in the hearts of my sons. These shirts have traveled around the world with us. They’ve been worn to birthday parties, and they’ve brought epic good luck at spelling bees and handball tournaments.
These shirts are keepers.
Problem: keepers have a way of getting worn a lot more frequently than the less favorite shirts. As a result, they tend to show their preferred status in the form of ice cream and pasta stains. This doesn’t have to be the end of the story. I’m a laundry geek. I love these challenges.
I’ve got a quick and easy routine that works like magic, and ensures that the keepers stick around for a second act – becoming favorites for a little brother and beyond that, going in the memory box. All it requires is a couple of products and a small plastic tub that I keep in my laundry sink.
It’s worth the extra effort. I’m saving all my sons’ favorite childhood tees for a cosy quilts for them… someday. Sans stains. Maybe they will take it to college with them. Maybe it will end up on their own son’s beds.
So here’s how we fight the stains. It’s best to do this while the stains are fresh, but I’ve managed to revive stained tees that slipped through the washer and dryer.
Step 1: Treat the stain with an OxiClean Max Force Gel Stick. (photo above). The gel stick is really effective and easy to use, just give it a little squeeze.
Step 2. Fill a small tub with hot water and a scoop of OxiClean powder. Soak for at least an hour, and up to a day.
Step 3: Drain the tub and wash the tee with your regular load of wash, preferably with OxiClean detergent. Check to sure stain is gone before adding shirt to the dryer. It’s rare for any stain to linger, but if the shirt has already gone through the dryer with a tough stain, you may have to soak for a little longer or repeat the process.
Lather, rinse, repeat… they say. Wear that tee and start all over again! Saving stained tees with OxiClean, is easy.
This Shark tee by Tea Collection is still going strong on son #2. It’s definitely ending up in the quilt!
Thanks to OxiClean for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.
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