Emergency measures
When, after a washing session, the housewife takes clothes out of the machine and sees that some things have become stained, she needs to act immediately. The following measures act as “first aid”:
- Repeated machine wash. The procedure is carried out at a temperature of 60° C. White items should be washed with the addition of powder and bleach. A stain remover helps get rid of stains on colored clothes.
- Boiling. Items that need “rescue” washing must be placed in a metal pan (its size depends on the amount of clothing) and placed on the stove. It will not be superfluous to add bleach, stain remover or shavings of laundry soap to the container. Boiling should last 2-3 hours. It is important to stir the contents of the pan periodically.
- Returning color according to a folk recipe. Grate a little laundry soap (preferably light) into a bowl on a fine grater. Add starch, salt, and citric acid in equal portions. Stir with water until the product becomes mushy and homogeneous. Next, the mixture must be applied to the wrong side of the clothing evenly over the entire area. After about 5 hours, the clothes are washed on a standard cycle.
Upon completion of each of these procedures, it is necessary to rinse things under running water. The sooner the measures described above are taken, the higher the chance of returning the clothes to their original appearance.
How to restore white products with starch?
White or light-colored items stained by faded items are sometimes sufficient to re-wash in hotter water or boil with powder. If this measure only lightens stains and stains, you need to proceed as follows:
- take 1 tbsp. planed laundry soap, citric acid, starch, coarse salt;
- add some water;
- mix everything in a small container until it becomes a paste;
- apply to the back of the product in the place where a stain occurred during washing;
- stand for about half a day;
- rinse thoroughly and dry.
It is important to act before the paint has time to harden in the fibers of the fabric.
Selection of funds
When an item is dyed during washing, what should you do to return it to its original color? An important role in the “rescue operation” is played by the selection of active agents. A properly selected powder or gel will help quickly remove traces of an unsuccessful wash. The following rules will help you make the right choice:
- When white clothes are stained due to washing with colored items, bleach will come to the rescue. Boiling with “Whiteness” will be effective.
- The stain remover restores colored items and eliminates cloudy stains. The product is selected depending on the material from which the item of clothing is made.
- It is impossible to ruin clothes with laundry soap. It is only important to remember that white clothes become yellow when washed with dark soap.
You cannot combine detergents from different brands or with different properties. The active ingredients of powders and gels are chemically aggressive, and therefore they will react with each other and either neutralize each other’s effects or destroy the tissue. Then the thing will be completely damaged.
An illiterate choice of active agents leads to the following consequences:
- formation of abrasions and gaps on the fabric;
- chemical burning (the active substance of the powder or gel corrodes the structure of the material);
- color change, partial or complete washing out of color pigment.
When clothes are dyed, you can wash them with special products no more than three times. Otherwise, the fabric fibers will be irrevocably damaged by the aggressive action of chemicals. If neither the first nor the second wash gives the desired result, the clothes cannot be saved.
Coloring
How to restore the color of a faded item if the described methods did not help? The only chance to save clothes is to dye them. The shade should be close to the initial one, but darker. Natural dense fabrics are dyed evenly and persistently, while synthetics are practically not tinted. Stores sell special paints for things - Dylon, Rit, Simplicol.
What to do if a colored item has faded and needs to be painted? Stages of work:
- Wear gloves.
- Dissolve the pigment in water in the proportions specified in the instructions.
- Heat the liquid to 40º and remove from heat.
- Place the washed item in it. Let sit for 20-30 minutes, stirring and turning the product regularly.
- Rinse the item of clothing in plenty of water.
Some preparations can be used to tint clothes in the washing machine. A self-dyed item must be washed separately from other laundry the first 2-3 times. To avoid fading, it should not be dried in direct sunlight.
Tip: In order to prevent “shedding”, a new brightly colored item should be soaked in a saline solution before the first wash. Salt will help fix the pigment. In addition, it will become clear whether the material stains water.
It's not always possible to keep track of everything in the apartment. It also happens that a jacket gets into the machine with things and it fades. And they discover this after finishing the wash, when their favorite sweater and skirt have turned a different color.
You can restore the color if you accidentally washed a red faded sweater with light-colored items. If your clothes are dyed, don’t put it off until later. The pigment will become even worse embedded in the material and will be more difficult to remove.
You need to save damaged clothes right away; every housewife should know how to do this, because this problem happens often.
Household methods
When things get dyed during washing, household products will come to the rescue. Here are some proven recipes:
- The clothes are soaked in soapy water with the addition of 4 tablespoons of vinegar. The cleansing procedure takes 7-9 hours, so it is wise to soak things overnight.
- When boiling stained laundry, add vinegar to the container at the rate of 1 tablespoon per 2 liters. If the color of the product has changed unevenly, you need to place the clothing for 4-5 hours in a thick solution of soda and warm water. The consistency should be thick.
- Treat the reverse side of the product with lemon juice (substitute: a bag of citric acid per 400 ml of water). The product is effective for 2-4 hours. If things are painted white, you cannot use this method: lemon leaves stains on light-colored materials.
- If a white item has lost its purity of color, the most effective is to use hydrogen peroxide, ammonia and water mixed in a 2:1:1 ratio. Clothes are soaked in this solution for several hours.
The final stages of each item are washing the product by hand or in a machine, rinsing.
How to get an original item of clothing from a damaged item?
Any stain resulting from a faded item can be decorated. There are a huge number of ways to get exclusive clothes from items that seem to be damaged during washing.
- Got a few stains on your blouse? Let's increase their number! Take artistic fabric paints or ordinary watercolors and apply them in random order onto the surface of your favorite item with a sponge. First, to prevent the paint from imprinting on the second surface, you need to lay a layer of thick oilcloth or cardboard inside, which is removed before ironing. Dry for several hours, then iron thoroughly through additional fabric to secure. In the future, this masterpiece can be washed in warm water (up to 40 degrees) in the usual way.
- Again paints, a sponge and any stencil. The resulting fabric painting will not have an arbitrary, but a very specific floral or other ornament and design.
- Any design on fabric can be made with simple felt-tip pens. The method of fastening is the same - ironing.
- Don't feel like painting? No problem! Using simple sewing threads or you can embroider several random multi-colored lines at the spots.
- Applications made from non-fading ribbons, sewn rhinestones and flowers, sequins and beads will not only save the painted item, but will also turn it into an unusual wardrobe item.
- You can radically change the color of a cotton product by boiling it in aniline dye. A woolen item can shrink greatly, while an acrylic item, on the contrary, will stretch.
- It is important to remember that artistic painting methods are not suitable for all knitted items. This is a great place to use embroidery or appliqué. And the surest remedy is to wash light, dark and colored items separately.
Most items have a tag that indicates the care instructions: washing mode, spin option, ironing parameters. Compliance with them allows you to preserve the original appearance of the products for a long time. But sometimes troubles happen - wardrobe items lose their color or are painted a different color. This often happens due to the housewife's absent-mindedness: washing white and colored clothes together or incorrect temperature conditions. In some situations, the manufacturer is to blame for using low-quality fabrics. What to do if an item fades during washing - what to do in this case and how to wash a faded item?
When answering the question of how to save a faded item at home, it is worth noting that it is impossible to return the original shade to a material that has partially discolored. The problem can be solved if:
- the white item has acquired an undesirable tone;
- the colored fabric was covered with spots of a different shade.
What should you do if things that were originally white are dyed during washing? There are several ways to return them to their original appearance.
Intensive wash
If white clothes turn gray or beige due to improper sorting before washing, you can try to wash them again, following one of two schemes:
- Soak in cold water with a large volume of white laundry detergent for several hours. Wash by hand. Repeat several times.
- Load laundry into the washing machine. Pour in as much powder as possible. It is advisable to add a little soda ash to it. Select the highest temperature. This option is suitable for cotton products.
Whitening paste for all types of fabrics
How to restore a faded white item if repeated washing does not work? It is worth using a special paste. It will help get rid of the yellowish tint and colored stains.
- Combine ½ tablespoon of table salt with equal parts of starch, laundry soap, citric acid (1 tablespoon each). For convenience, it is better to first turn the soap into shavings.
- Pour some water into the mixture to form a paste.
- Apply to stains. After 12 hours, wash and rinse.
Digestion
Thinking about what to do if a thing faded after washing, in ancient times they came to the decision to boil it. This method is suitable exclusively for cotton products without elastic bands, lace or other decorative elements. With its help you can refresh bed linen, tablecloths, and towels.
The essence of boiling is that the laundry is placed in a large container of water, placed on the stove and boiled for 60-120 minutes. It must be stirred, and at the end, carefully pulled out, placed in a basin and rinsed in cold water. To bleach, add 15 g of soda and 40 g of laundry soap or 10 ml of ammonia and 100 ml of hydrogen peroxide to water (5 l).
Soak
When figuring out how to wash items that have faded during washing, if they are made of delicate fabrics, you should pay attention to the following methods:
- Pour ammonia (100 ml) into a bowl with 5-7 liters of hot water. Dip clothes into the liquid and leave for 2-3 hours. Rinse well. The disadvantage of this method is the strong unpleasant aroma of ammonia.
- Dissolve ½ cup of washing powder and several crystals of potassium permanganate in a bucket of hot water. The solution should turn pale pink. Immerse the product in the bucket and wait 3-4 hours. Wash.
- Prepare a solution of 2 liters of water, 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 1 tablespoon of hydrogen peroxide. Heat to 70 ºС. Leave the item down for 10 minutes. Rinse.
Note: When using boiled water, be sure to protect your hands. You can turn the laundry over with wooden sticks or wear two layers of gloves - regular and rubber.
Industrial bleaches
How to wash a faded item at home without folk remedies? Industrial bleaches effectively combat stains on white clothes. There are two main types – chlorine-containing and oxygen-containing. The former can leave yellow marks on the fabric and ruin its fibers. Oxygen-containing preparations are considered more active and gentle.
You should wear rubber gloves before using bleach. Next, you need to dilute it in water and soak the item for 6-12 hours, then wash it. If there are individual stains, it is recommended to apply a concentrated product to them.
Extreme method
How to wash clothes if they stained during washing and gentle methods did not help remove the stain? When all the measures taken are unsuccessful, you can turn to the next method.
It is necessary to dissolve a little potassium permanganate in water and add washing powder. Soak the item in this solution for 2-3 hours. Then wash and rinse under running water. It must be remembered that potassium permanganate can damage the fabric, and with such washing there is a risk of ruining the item.
Caring for colored items
What to do if the item faded during washing and stains appeared on it? This problem is more difficult to deal with than. But with minor light stains or traces of a different color, you can try to “resurrect” the item of clothing.
Folk remedies
- Dissolve 200 ml of ammonia at 10% concentration in 5 liters of hot water. Soak the item for 1 hour. Rinse. The method makes the color more vibrant.
- Brew 2 liters of green tea. Filter. Soak clothes in the liquid. After 15 minutes, sprinkle salt on the light areas. After another 15 minutes, wash. The method is suitable for black and white products.
- Dissolve 1 kg of crushed chalk in 3 liters of water. Place the item in the liquid for 30-60 minutes, stirring occasionally. Rinse in water with a little vinegar added. This way you can update wool products.
- Rub stains with laundry soap. After a few hours, wash and rinse.
Stain removers and color restorers
If a colored item has faded, how can you wash it without damaging it? There are many stain removers available for colored items. You can see the Color mark on their label. They remove dirt without removing the main coloring pigment. They should be used if stains of a different shade appear on clothing. Well-known products are Vanish Color, ACE Oxi Magic, Udalix Oxi Ultra, Astonish Oxi Plus, Sarma Active 5 in 1.
The stain remover must be used as indicated in the instructions. The most effective way:
- Wash the item in regular detergent.
- Pour the drug in concentrated form onto the stains.
- After 15-30 minutes, wash the product in the machine with the addition of stain remover.
When figuring out how to restore the color of a faded item, do not forget about color restorers. Popular products – Dylon SOS Color, Dr. Beckmann, "Antilin". The drug is diluted in hot water according to the instructions, the item is immersed in the solution for 3-4 hours, after which it is washed. Due to the presence of aggressive components, it is better to cover the container with laundry with a lid and put gloves on your hands.
In case of failure
What to do if it was not possible to return the damaged item to its original color? The way out would be:
- Masking of defects. If the item is only partially painted, in some places, you can select a suitable applique and stick it over the stains. Another option: creatively play with the spots, making them the center of the composition, and add an abstract ornament or meaningful design on top of them. The problem is that it will not look appropriate and beautiful on all things.
- Work use. The painted item is suitable for the role of a work suit for the dacha or during repairs. After such use, it is not a pity to throw away a wardrobe item.
- Creative uses. Creative individuals can use unsuccessfully washed blouses or dresses to sew toys, pillows, patchwork items, etc.
So, a damaged item can always be given a second life.
We use special equipment
If the problem is not noticed immediately, traditional methods of solution may be powerless. In such cases, one can only hope for the achievements of the modern chemical industry.
- "Antilinin." According to the inscription on the packaging, the product will help if clothes are accidentally stained, and it can be used for colored materials.
- Bleaching agent for natural and synthetic fabrics. The oxygen-containing product is quite effective mainly for light-colored materials.
- Stain removers for colored materials. They usually have the corresponding “Color” designation. Among the most preferred ones, you can pay attention to Paracle, Oxi or Clean. Preparations labeled “White” will help save white clothes.
What to do if your T-shirt stains during washing
If your snow-white blouses or pink jeans have been dyed a different color or have strange stains or stains on them, then do not panic, because there are several best ways to get rid of this trouble at home.
As a rule, machine dyeing occurs due to inattention or deliberate laziness, when red or blue is washed with white, yellow or beige, thinking that all clothes are colored. But often, when washed, a dyed T-shirt or T-shirt receives a stain from another, brighter item.
Even though you decide to wash a colored item with a similar one, do not forget that new clothes are always washed separately for the first time, since otherwise they will fade and stain your other outfits.