Expert Tip

While the following tips are very helpful and may treat most food stains, it’s always a good idea to have your clothes treated by a stain expert from the start. This is to prevent improper treatment of the stain, which will cause it to sink into the fabric even further and damage your clothing item(s) permanently.

Here are 4 steps to remove barbecue sauce stains from your shirts, pants and dresses.

Step 1. Remove the excess barbecue sauce from your clothing

Using a spoon, gently scoop any barbecue sauce from the fabric. You won’t be able to get the sauce that has already soaked into the fabric, but at least this will prevent the stain from spreading on other parts of the clothing.

Step 2. Rinse with cold water

Run cold water through the back of the stain as quickly as possible. Make sure not to use hot water because hot water can make it even more difficult, if not impossible to remove the stain. Rub a liquid laundry detergent into the stained portion of the fabric. You want both sides to be completely soaked through. The reason to use liquid laundry detergent is that it is very good at removing the oily and greasy parts of the barbecue sauce that try to stick on the fibers of your clothing.

Step 3. Use a stain remover

Apply a stain remover (spray or liquid) of your personal choice and allow it to sit for at least ten minutes before washing. It is best to apply the stain remover on both sides of the fabric to make sure the stained area is fully covered. Do make sure to wash the fabric within 20 minutes of applying the stain remover. If the garment is white, you can apply a mild bleaching product like white vinegar. Make sure to rinse well afterwards. It’s important to keep in mind that even mild bleaching products can remove the color of clothing. If you are concerned about this, it’s best to skip this part.

Step 4. Soak in warm water if steps 1 – 3 are unsuccessful

If for any reason the stain remains, rub some liquid laundry detergent into the stain and soak in warm water for about 30 minutes. Rinse well before washing again and allow the clothing item to air dry to make sure the entire stain has been removed.

Step 5. Bonus: Leave it to the professionals!

If you choose to follow these steps, do remember that the more you treat a stain and if you don’t treat it properly, the more likely it is to embed itself permanently into the fabric. Cleaning experts such as dry cleaners are better equipped to treat any stain. The chance of fully removing a stain is better if it is done by an expert the first time around. If you notice that the stain is still visible after these steps, then we recommend to still have this outfit treated by a professional dry cleaning (delivery) service. Our stain removal professionals are ready to take on any stain. Step 1 is still recommended, but avoid further treatment (especially rubbing!) of the stained area.

Now, who’s ready for some burgers?

It’s very likely that at some time or the other, you owned a dress shirt or blouse that had stains, discoloration or even tears after only a few wears. Especially in the armpit area (Hello yellow underarms!). With the warmth of the summer comes the challenge of keeping the underarms of your dress shirts or blouses dry, clean, and most importantly the same color as the rest of the shirt. So you’re probably asking yourself: what happened to my dress shirt or blouse that caused the stain or discoloration? Why can’t I raise my arms in confidence, high five people or give thumbs ups?

How armpit stains are formed

Deodorants and anti-perspirants contain several chemicals including aluminum chloride, alcohol and fragrances. Keep in mind that these are also included in your body lotions, perfumes, hair sprays and many other hygienic products that you personally put on. Once these active ingredients, which happen to be quite acidic, connect with your sweat, they can stain, weaken and even ruin your clothes.  Cotton, linen and synthetic fabrics are especially vulnerable to stains and damage from aluminum chloride. It is also important to know that a professional dry cleaner has no way of knowing that your underarm fabric is becoming weakened until the effects are visible, often after the item is cleaned.

How to prevent yellow stains

Natural Deodorant

In order to prevent this type of damage you might consider changing to a deodorant that is labeled “natural”, doesn’t contain aluminum chloride and has a neutral pH. It’s also important to point out that after taking a shower, you should wait until your skin is fully dry before applying deodorant, and then allow it to completely dry before putting on your clothes.

Wear an undershirt to prevent yellow armpit stains

Another solution, although not as popular today as a few decades ago, is wearing an undershirt. The undershirt can effectively protect your expensive dress shirts from stains and helps prolong the lifespan of your clothes. This trick will also keep your shirt fresher all day.

Wash the garment right after wearing

Besides the discoloration of your dress shirt under the arms you may also notice weakening of the fabric, sometimes even small tears. This happens when anti-perspirants have remained on the fabric for a long period of time. In order to prevent this type of chemical damage, make sure to wash the dress shirt as soon as possible after wearing to have the anti-perspirant removed from the garment.

Conclusion

In the business world, armpit stains are not only embarrassing, but they’re also very distracting. How could your potential client or even your boss focus on your wonderful presentation when every time you raise your arm, a big yellow stain is staring back at them? Well, let’s look on the bright side. Mr. Timesaver has you covered. As an on-demand dry cleaning and laundry service provider, we genuinely know your clothing is important for you and also an investment of both money and time. For that reason, we’re always looking for innovative and sustainable ways to extend the lifespan of your clothing and provide you with the best customer service.

Learn more about treating and preventing the “ring around the collar” stain on your dress shirts. 

DRESS SHIRTS: HOW TO PREVENT THE RING AROUND THE COLLAR STAIN

Preventing Ring Around the Dress Shirt Collar

Before we talk about how to properly deal with yellow collar stains, we should first understand what causes it and a few key things you can do to prevent it (or reduce it). That unpleasant yellow ring on your collar is caused by sweat and a combination of dead skin cells, oils that your body produces, and product buildup.

Hygiene and dress shirts

Sadly, not much can be done about sweat other than making use of body wipes on your neck throughout the day and applying a bit of (baby) powder after showering. For those struggling with a bad case of ring around the collar, adopting a few extra hygiene habits to reduce the amount of collar buildup wouldn’t hurt. Using shower sponges or washcloths in the shower are great ways to give your neck some love in the shower. Post-shower, if you’re a person who uses body lotion or hair products like gel, make sure to wipe your neck before putting on your dress shirt. This is to prevent the products from being soaked up by your collar (and your shirt’s armpit area).

Multiple wears & irons

While wearing dress shirts multiple times between washes might be a popular thing to do for some people, it’s not the best thing to do if you want to maintain the look of your dress shirt in the long run. Wearing a dress shirt more than once without washing is not recommended as the body heat generated from the second wearing can set in stains from the previous wearing. The collars may even look clean at this stage but oils can appear invisible until heat is applied. If for any reason you decide to re-press a worn dress shirt for a second wearing, it’s important to keep in mind that this can and probably will cause the dirt and oils in the collar to set and become permanent stains.

Treating Ring Around the Collar Stains at Home

There are many products to treat rings around the collar nowadays. Most of them are available on almost every store shelf. However, since everyone has a different body chemistry, it’s difficult to say that there’s one specific product that will work best for everyone.  The downside of these “ring around the collar treatments” is that they can actually set in the stain if not used correctly. For that reason, we recommend using an on demand dry cleaning service. A professional dry cleaner will pre-treat the ring around the collar stain with multiple formulas which will remove or lighten it. The probability of the stain setting and becoming permanent is minimized when done by professionals.

*Important notice: If you’re uncertain of how to properly treat a stain, it’s best to let your dry cleaner make the first attempt. Wrongly treating a stain may in fact make it harder or even impossible for the dry cleaner to remove it after your attempt. 

Bonus: Tips For Keeping Dress Shirts Looking Great

• Make sure to scrub your neck well during shower.
• Minimize use of body lotion or colognes around your neck.
• Wash your dress shirt after every wear, especially white ones.

Other benefits of using a dry cleaning service and more on our blog.

But first, what is the dry cleaning process itself?

Dry cleaning uses fluids to remove stains and soils from fabrics. Amongst the advantages of dry cleaning is its ability to dissolve grease and oils in a way that water cannot. Natural fibers such as silk and wool dry clean beautifully, but can shrink, distort, and even lose color when washed in water. Synthetic fibers like polyester, also respond well to dry cleaning, whereas they can retain oily stains after washing in water. Dry cleaning helps to return garments to a “like-new” condition using precautions to prevent shrinkage, loss of color, and change of texture.

When you pay attention to clothing details and care labels, you know which pieces respond best to dry cleaning. If for any reason you’re unable to tell from the label, trust a professional dry cleaner, you can’t go wrong. The benefits of dry cleaning go way beyond just removing stains and freshening garments. Once you know and understand them all, you’ll wonder why you didn’t start using dry cleaning services sooner.

So, what are the benefits of dry cleaning?

1. Dry cleaning is less abrasive

Today’s dry cleaning innovations use greener products and are less abrasive on your clothing than old-fashioned home washing and drying. Your delicate clothes that need special care are always handled per dry cleaning best practices. If you combine that with our dry cleaner’s many years of experience cleaning clothes for The Hague’s finest, you can be certain that your clothing will be in good hands.

2. Professional dry cleaners pay close attention to detail

When you do your laundry at home, you also have the tasks of folding, ironing, and storing items back in place. However, when your items are being taken care of by a professional dry cleaning or laundry service, they can handle all those details for you. All you have to do after receiving your items is hang them in the closet. Have your dry cleaning pickup and deliver to your door in The Hague (Wassenaar, Rijswijk, Leidschendam and Voorschoten), Leiden, Rotterdam & Delft 7 days a week. With this service, you never have to worry about dragging your clothing to the dry cleaners again.

3. Dry cleaning is perfect for stain and odor removal

Occasionally home remedies can remove stains, but they may do so at the cost of damaging the garments. It’s a better idea to trust your items to a professional dry cleaner who can expertly remove tough stains and odors. If you’re considering throwing away certain items because you can’t remove certain stains and odors, try letting a professional dry cleaner inspect the items first.

4. Dry cleaners have the capacity to handle large items

Dry cleaners can clean larger items, including curtains, rugs, sofa covers, and large size comforters that can be an unmanageable chore for you to handle at home. Using professional dry cleaning services for your clothing & largers items saves you time and is one less thing to worry about in your busy schedule.

5. Dry cleaning helps your clothes last longer

When you have your clothes professionally dry cleaned and pressed, they aren’t exposed to the fiber-wearing agitation of the washing machine, and therefore will look their best longer. The colors of the clothing will be brighter, and you will save money by not having to purchase clothes as often.

Conclusion: A Dry Cleaning Service Saves You Time And Does The Ironing For you!

One key point to make is that your time is valuable. Let’s face it, the time we spend with our family and friends is limited, often overshadowed by work demands and tight schedules. Doing laundry is a chore that can take up your entire day. Then there’s the ironing. Having to iron a basket full of laundry does not appeal to anyone with better things to do. Is it worth all that hassle just to save a few euros each month?

Dry Cleaning Delivered? Learn More About Mr. Timesaver

Mr. Timesaver is an on-demand pickup and delivery service for dry cleaning, laundry, clothing repair and shoe repair. The services of Mr. Timesaver are currently offered in The Hague (Wassenaar, Rijswijk, Voorburg, Leidschendam and Voorschoten), Leiden, Rotterdam & Delft. Mr. Timesaver is the only pickup and delivery service open 7 days a week, starting from 7 AM until midnight. To schedule your order is very easy. Visit our website at mrtimesaver.nl and within a few clicks you’re done. Looking good has never been this easy.