Title: “Say NO to Stains”
Exhibitor: Christine Anderson
Description: Housekeeping is not just one skill; it is a combination of
many, many skills. To be an efficient housekeeper, each woman needs a little luck and a little know-how on her side. Following are some simple, affordable and easy remedies that will help in stain removal in all areas of your home. Included are some homemade recipes for cleaning solutions and helpful hints from Eugenia Chapman’s book, Clean Your House and Everything In It (used with permission) that will make cleaning your house easier.
How To’s:
Cleaning Remedies for Clothing
Cleaning
Remedies for Clothing:
Candle wax or paraffin: Solidify the wax by rubbing it with an ice cube, then scrape off as much as possible with a dull knife. Place the fabric beneath a brown paper sack or several layers of white paper towel and press with a warm iron.
Chocolate or cocoa: Soak in cold water, then pre-treat wit a pre-wash stain remover.
Crayon: Loosen the stain with kitchen shortening and then pre-treat with a pre-wash stain remover. Plastic dishpan method: If the stain persists or is widespread (this usually happens when a crayon is washed and dried with the clothes), then use the following method. In a plastic dishpan add ½ cup of powdered dishwashing detergent (or ½ cup of Spic and Span or Soilax) and ½ cup of baking soda. Fill the pan with hot water and put in the clothes. Swish the clothes up and down about every half hour to forty-five minutes for at least eight hours, then wash the stained clothes in the washing machine. Some crayons are made with a permanent dye and nothing will remove them.
Deodorants: Pre-treat with a pre-wash stain remover and rinse.
Eggs: Scrape off the dried egg and soak the stain in cold water. Pre-treat with a pre-wash stain remover.
Grass: Pre-treat with a pre-wash stain remover (I have found Fels-Naptha will do the best job) and rinse. If the stain persists, sponge with rubbing alcohol (test in an inconspicuous spot first for possible color damage.
Grease and Oil: Pre-treat with a pre-wash stain remover, then launder in hot water, using bleach. If the stain persists, sponge it with a cleaning solvent (such as Thoro).
Ink or Felt-tip Pen: Spray a cheap hair spray containing lacquer onto the ink spots. Launder as usual. Rubbing alcohol will also remove ink. Sponge it on and rinse.
Lipstick and Blush: Many lipsticks are impossible to remove from fabrics. Pre-treat with a pre-wash stain remover or cheap hair spray and rinse. If the stain doesn’t come out, take it to a professional spotter at a dry cleaners.
Mustard: Rinse off in cold water. Pre-treat with a pre-wash stain remover and then soak in hot detergent water for several hours. If the stain persists, sponge it with rubbing alcohol. (Test fabric for color-fastness.)
The main solution for carpet stains is: ½ cup clear ammonia, ½ cup cleaning solvent (such as Thoro), and ½ gallon warm water. Using a terry cloth towel, dip the towel into the solution then rub the stained area of the carpet. Use a clean area of the towel each time for added stain removal. Repeat as necessary. Then use a vinegar solution (1 cup white vinegar to 1 gallon warm water) and a new terry cloth towel, and wipe the area clean. Use a different and new terry cloth towel to blot the area as dry as possible. I found that this solution will dissolve most stains.
A good spot cleaner is 1 teaspoon of white vinegar in 1 quart of warm water. This will help with some spots.
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Carpet:
Try and vacuum your carpet daily, and if not possible, try for at least 3 times a week. This keeps the dirt up to the surface and doesn’t let it get ground in as much.
To deodorize your carpet, sprinkle baking soda over the area, wait a few minutes and then vacuum it up.
To raise an indentation left in your carpet by heavy furniture, etc., hold a steam iron just above the flattened area. Make sure the iron doesn’t touch the carpet. The steam from the iron will raise the nap.
Windows:
A good basic window cleaner is 2 tablespoons rubbing alcohol to 2 quarts of hot water.
Wash the windows from left to right on the outside and up and down on the inside. That way, if there is a streak, you will know which side of the window it is on.
Blinds (levolor: all kinds – wooden, metal, plastic): Use 2 tablespoons Murphy’s Oil Soap and 2 quarts of hot water. Put on a pair of cotton gardening gloves. Using your strong hand (either right or left) dip the hand into the cleaning solution, then use your fingers between the blind slats as scrubbers. You can do 4 slats at a time. Then use your dry hand to wipe the blinds dry if needed. (It is usually not needed.)
Kitchen:
To cure the dingy smell of a garbage disposal, fill an ice cube tray (be sure it is marked so your family doesn’t get a surprise) with a solution of ½ cup vinegar and 5 cups water. Let freeze. Grind the vinegar cubes once a week. The ice cubes sharpen the blades, and the vinegar cleans and freshens the disposal.
To help catch spills under the electric burners of a stove,
you can place a throw-away aluminum pie tin under each burner to catch debris
and spill over liquid. These can be
washed and reused again and again.
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