Laundry Advise

I see you have many helpful responses, so I won't repeat any of those ideas. Here are some out-of-the-laundry-box ideas.

Once a garment is stained beyond removal, consider it a canvas and let you or your daughter have fun making more stains. For example, if it is a ketchup stain, use a bit more ketchup on her hands and make hand prints over the stain and in other strategic areas. Or, look at the stain like we sometimes look at clouds and see if you can find a shape you can work with. Once you decide on the shape you can take a permanent marker and decorate it into a face, a flower, an animal, etc. Stained clothes can become an art project.

When my son was 7 we took a white T-shirt to Powder Valley for a great program they provided. One of the Mo Conservation Departments scientists brought pelts so kids could feel the fur of various animals and learn about them. She also brought molds made from various animal paws and the kids used them with stamp pads to put paw prints all over their shirts. My son made it look like several animals had walked across his shirt at various angles and then used a permanent marker to write: "I fell asleep in the woods..."
You can use stamp pads of various colors to make designs over stains as you choose.

If it is simply a question of social dignity and you wish others could learn to be more understanding, you can help that along by either marking or stitching a message on your daughter's well stained clothes. It could say something like "I play hard, and here's the evidence" with arrows drawn to the stains. Every time she adds a stain, just add an arrow. It could also say something like, "I'm 2 & proud of the messes I make. I'll stay cleaner like my Mom some day."
I think it would be great to help encourage more understanding and welcoming attitudes toward toddlers and their hard working Moms. (If the folks who design these clothes were smart, they would make clothes that size with the first message above already printed and a small marker and guide for adding arrows and instructions for adding the first stain and arrow to complete the customized ensemble.)

Now for laundry tips: I have never regreted investing in a front-load washer. Almost every stain is washed out in 2 or three washes without any pre-treatments, except things like paint, of course. All my clothes last years longer.

Also, read the Oxy Clean label carefully. Too many uses ate holes in my all cotton sheets and my rayon clothes. Toddlers' clothing is normally out-grown before out-worn, so if you want to treat her clothes with harsher laundry products, make sure you aren't ruining other garments in the same load that you might want to wear next year.

Just so you know, there really are experienced moms and grandmoms out there that see a bright happy face above multi-stained clothes and feel great appreciation for the mom that "gets it".

3 moms found this helpful

Hi L.,

I would try setting aside several pairs of inexpensive "play" clothes for her. That way she doesn't end up messing up all her clothes. You can just let her wear these when she's at home playing around so she won't make a mess of her nice outfits. Good luck!

2 moms found this helpful

I haven't done the math to see how cheap it is, but I have a recipe for stain remover that works most of the time on my 3 yoa's clothes and pretty decent on her Dad's greasy jeans.
1/2 c white vinegar
1/2 c ammonia
1/2 c Era Plus or Wisk (I've found Era works better.
1/2 c water

Mix them up and put into a squirt bottle. Spray on, rub in and let them sit for 5-10 min.
I don't know if you live in town or the country, but we live in the country, so my daughter wears stained up clothes at home and I try to save several tops for only wearing to town and public events. I also really like to pick up clothes at rummage sales or thrift stores. My daughter goes thru a lot of clothes,too. Usually what starts out as a good shirt is worn for a while til she gets something on it that I can't get out, then it becomes a home shirt. I haven't read the responses yet, but am eager to do so. Sorry if I'm repeating what's already been said. Good luck on the suggestions. I know exactly what you are going thru.

2 moms found this helpful

I just bought the new Spray-N-Wash with Resovle in it for my son's white baseball pants, and it worked good on the grass and dirt stains! I just used a lil brush and after letting it sit (for days even, then I'd spray again) I'd scrub it a bit. Have you tried bleach/color safe bleach? Also, as the other Moms suggested, seperate her clothes into play, and nice clothes. My son enjoys going to my Dads auto body shop, and he has set clothes for down there so he can stain them with grease etc as he pleases! LOL I know how you feel though about people thinking you're a bad parent or something, my son chews little holes in his shirts, and I'm just like agh quit!!! It's always on his school clothes too! LOL Anyhow, good luck!

2 moms found this helpful

I am the mother of 4 active kids living in a neighborhood still under construction. They are always filthy. Their dad also is a do it your selfer including working on hobby cars. He always wears a white t-shirt and forgets that he has a drawer full of old work ones. He too comes in covered with grease, transmission fluid and oil. I use Fast Orange that you buy at Auto Zone on everything. It is made for mechanics to clean their hands. It is wonderful. Just scrub it in and throw it in the wash.

1 mom found this helpful

Have you tried Totally Toddler spray- they carry it at BRU and Walmart now too- the only thing I haven't gotten out with it is chocolate- then I have to revert to Oxy or one of the other mentioned above-- in 3.5yrs I have only tossed 2 shirts due to non-removable stains!

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I keep a tucker tote of clean play clothes next to the laundry machine and by the back door...my kids know that if they are on their way out, they strip down from their good clothes and put on the play clothes...you can get cheapies in lots on ebay, goodwill stores or garage sales...this way you will be able to save her good clothes for when you go out.

As for stains...I've found the Spray and wash dual cleaner to be a really exceptional product. I also use Baby Oxyclean...it doesn't tend to fade the clothes and tends to get more out than regular Oxyclean. I also save our old electric toothbrushes to use for scrubing the stains...it's a lot easier than elbow greese. If you have whites, you can also you a Rit re-whitener on the items that will help brighten them up. Good luck.

1 mom found this helpful

A friend of mine told me Cascade dishwasher detergent dissolved in water will take out any stain. A few weeks ago my husband came home from work and a pen had exploded in his shirt. He was ready to throw it out but I decided to try soaking the shirt in Cascade water. It immediately went to work on the stain. Within 15 minutes most of the stain was out so I changed the water and let it soak overnight in Cascade water. The next morning the shirt was completely clean. Give this a try...it worked for me!

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My advice isn't so much about the laundry - b/c I haven't really found something that works all or even most of the time...

However, I did want to suggest that you might want to just distinguish play and not play clothes---Reserve a few outfits that she can only wear in situations where she is less likely to get too messy with them.

Frankly, I believe too many adults in public are quick to judge== and either don't have kids or have forgotten what kids are like.

Kids should be exploring their world - and they will get dirty.

Unfortunately there are parents who treat their kids more like dolls-- that have to look pretty all the time.

I swear we would all be a lot happier as parents if we could just ignore the 'looks' and comments other people make about our kids in public....

1 mom found this helpful

have you tried adding Borax to your regular laundry det.? I know that I have added some along with ALL and my boys clothes have come out looking alot better.You can get this is the isle along with the other detergents.

A little about me:
SAHM of 2 110% little boys: William-3 and Evan-1 1/2. Married to soul mate for 8 years(who gets almost as dirty as the two little ones).

1 mom found this helpful

L.,

There's one thing you can be sure about is, your a great mother, and if anyone thinks any different, they are the ones that actually don't matter. So what if a two year old has a stain? Life is too short to be so worried over a stain and what others think, now if she had black eyes and smelled and her health was in great need of attention, I'd be more worried. Have you heard of the book, "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" ? Go to garage sales and get her clothes. Tide has a great soap that is really good called bleach for colors, it took out a grass stain after I treated it with hairspray first. I hope Your not offended, it just is so normal for a two year old to be stained. Don't worry anymore, life is too short. Your a great mom, don't let anyone tell you different!
DE

1 mom found this helpful

Try using a product called Fels Naptha Soap. You hand was her clothes with it under warm water - it takes the dirt right out. I just used it on some Ravioli that attacked my daughters white shirt and it came completly out! You can also boil it down and add it to your wash load. The best way to get out the stains is to hand wash first and then launder them in the washing machine. I use this stuff all the time on both of my kid's clothes. It works great! The only place I have found to buy it is at Hy Vee Grocery Stores. You can order it online as well at www.soapsgoneby.com The best part is that is is only around $1.50 or $2.00 a bar. I hope this helps you out! E.

1 mom found this helpful

Hi,
First off, buy several play outfits at a garage sale. Saves time, $$ and aggravation. Also, give the Oxy-Clean about 48 hours. That's what it took for my two boys' stains to be removed. It's frustrating but sounds like our kiddos are having fun.
Good Luck.

1 mom found this helpful

I have a 10-month old who manages to find every speck of dirt! The thing that I have found that works the best is Dreft liquid detergent and Clorox 2. Also, on really tough stains I will pretreat with a little Clorox 2 right before I throw it in the wash and it works like a charm! Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful

I tried Spray N Wash also but it never got my stains out. I recently bought Shout Advance and it's worked wonders! I even did a test- Emme got BBQ sauce all over one of her shirts. I sprayed it after she was done eating and let it sit for 3 days (we had family in town!) then I sprayed it again before putting it in the wash. It came out perfect! I couldn't believe it. And there was BBQ sauce ALL over.

1 mom found this helpful

What works for me almost every time (grease, set-in stains, dirt, darkened juice from an apple that wouldn't even come out with bleach) is soaking the article of clothing in very, very, very hot water with (real) OxyClean powder mixed in. I let it sit for days sometimes. When I pull it out of the water, it might look like the stain is still there, but when I put it through the washer it comes out clean. If not, I soak and wash again. I can't think of a time that one or two soaks like this didn't get out my stains.

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You sound like you are doing everything you can with the laundry products. My only other suggestion is to keep her clothing segregated into "play clothes, or everyday clothes" for her activities, and then have "going to town clothes or outing clothes" that are only worn when you go out to the store or in public places.
It used to be, years ago when my grandmother was raising kids, women and their families did this. You had house dresses that you also covered with aprons for chores, and if you had to go anywhere you would change out of your working clothing for clothes that were in better condition.
It's just a suggestion since you seem to be bothered by it.
I'm very glad to hear that your daughter is active and energetic, there's nothing better for her than to be out playing. :)

1 mom found this helpful

So glad to hear your daughter is playing outside and not playing video games! So healthy!! My daughter (7) is also a stain producer. So far, this has worked for me, however, I have not tried some of the other suggestions and look forward to doing so. Anyway, I spray the stain with spray and wash until it is saturated. Then, I put a little liquid All on the stain and scrub the material against itself until it bubbles. If it doesn't bubble, I add more spray and wash. Scrub, scrub, scrub. Then, throw it into the load of wash. Occasionally I have to repeat this and wash again. I can get anything out using this method. I have gotten my babies bibs that were covered in baby food and spit up completely clean after they sat for a few days with no attention. My mom does this with powder Tide, also. Elbow grease, girl!! Good luck! Also, the mom's that suggested garage sale cloths, great idea! I have "play cloths" draws in my kids dressers. Anything I don't want stained, I hang up in the closet. Good luck with the baby!!

1 mom found this helpful

I use the spray n' wash with resolve and it works great for me. I do at least one load a day for my 12 week old.

I use Zout on my grandkids clothes - and use the Oxy-Clean in the washer. The Zout has been the best that I have found for stains. And - don't worry about what people think - if your child is happy and healthy, it doesn't matter! Everyone knows you can't keep a child clean! Just keep experimenting - it took me a few years to figure out what worked for me with my 5 kids when they were little! Now my daughter brings me the really bad things from my 6-year old granddaughter (she is alot like your daughter!) to get the stains out - and there are some that I can't get out, either! Good luck with the new baby - and enjoy them while you can - they grow up way too fast!

Hi, Im the mother of 7 yr old twins and a ten year old who is very messy! I swear by Clorox 2. I put it on and rub it in with a toothbrush really well. Then I let it sit for an hour or more, sometimes overnight. Was as usual. It even took stains out of a baby blanket that had been stored for 25 years. Talk about tough stains! Try it!

Clorox for colors, i love this stuff, it takes practically everything out, and tottally toddler is alright too, , i bleach the whites, but Clorox 2 which is also Clorox for colors i found out is the best, i even put some diluted into a spray bottle for carpet stains and furniture stains, i love the stuff.

I have a son with the same problem. The best that I can tell you is reserve a few outfits for good, (meaning when you go out in public) and then have her play clothes. We just wait until it is close to time to go and change our sons clothes. He gets very dirty as well and loves to play outside, usually in the dirt or mud but more recently working on cars with dad that results in grease stains that never come out. You can try presoaking the clothes but I am not for sure if that will help either. Hope this helps!

Well my problem is not only my children, but also my husband...he seems to get stuff on all his shirts. My son plays football and after those it in his room, because he is too lazy to bring them down, it seems pretty bad. I have tried lots of things also. I have found that if I pretreat with laundry detergent and rub the fabric together it works. Sometimes i have to do this 2 times, but it does work. Make sure you use cold water and do not dry in the heat of the dryer until you know it is out. I have also tried to use white hand soap and that seems to work also. Good luck! T.

Once you take them out of the washer, if they are still stained, treat again. Drying sets in stains. I use pre-spot and it is phenomenal, however it is not available in stores. Before finding prespot I used Zout and it worked better than spray n wash and oxy clean. If you'd like to find out more about pre-spot and an entire line of eco friendly cleaning products let me know :)

The only thing that helps alittle that I found was to wash them in cold

Try "Totally Toddler" stain remover. You can find it at Walmart or Babies R Us (Target might have it too but there's not one close to me so I'm not sure). It takes almost everything out of my kid's clothes. My son plays baseball and has white baseball pants and I can even get MOST of the red dirt out of that from when he slides into base.

We've even used it on the carpet in my daughter's room instead of carpet cleaner to get baby spit up out of it because it works better than the carpet shampoo.

Hope that helps! =0)

A.

What if you had some clothes that were everyday clothes and then set aside a few outfits for her to wear when you go out to somewhere nice or in public where dirty clothes may be embarassing to you? Other than that, I have heard many moms say they buy white shirts and such. It sounds counter intuitive, but white can be bleached and it is much easier to get stuff out with the power of bleach. Also, yellow is the absolute WORST color for showing and retaining the look of dirt. Good luck! And, by the way, don't worry about those people who judge what they don't understand. They are everywhere and you just have to ignore them. Your daughter is loved, healthy, active, and it sounds as though very happy. That is the best we parents can offer them.

I use shout and I love it. None of my baby clothes are stained and my 3 year olds clothes are looking pretty good too. May I suggest buying some "good clothes" and having "everyday clothes" that way you can put your daughter in unstained clothes that make you feel better and when she is playing she can get as dirty as she wants in her everyday clothes. We grew up with not much money and our mom always made us change out of our "school god clothes" into our everyday clothes to play after school. I hope this helps. Have a great day.

My fav. stain remover is Zout...i found it when i worked for a resturant one summer during college...it got BBQ sauce all all other nasty stains out every time. Have had good luck with dirt, paint, poo, spit up, and even blood. I can usually find it at HyVee or Target. a few sprays, soak in HOT water for a few min., sometime use a toothbrush for stubborn stains. If they are really stubborn stains, I spray and then lay the clothing out in the sun for an hour or so.

Definatley recommend having some play clothes and non-play clothes!

Good luck!!!!!

Liquid era is the only detergent with enzyme eaters. I pre-treat with it. You put it on just as you would the shout or spray and wash. You give a quick rub in and you can let it sit or wash it. I have never had grass,blood, food, or just plain dirt never come out when using this.

C. M

I am not sure which Laundry Detergent that you use but when I started using Tide I had much better luck with stains, it does cost more though. But worth it to me! I also use the shout stain stick, you can rub it on the stain and it can set for up to 5 days I think. I also use oxy clean and one time purchased the generic and I will be honest with you it did not work as well as the name brand!

Hope this helps you, good luck!

Biz Bleach works wonderfully. Add some along with your detergent and a squirt of Dawn dish soap and voila, stains are gone! Good luck! Kati

I completely understand. I have 2 boys who love anything that has dirt or mud in it and 2 infant girls who love to spit up and poop just outside their diaper. I have tried several things and have found that Clorox 2 when mixed with your regular detergent works wonders. For the really nasty stains (my girls) I will usually pour right onto the stain fright before I put in the laundry. This stuff is amazing and I wish that I found it years ago. I hope that this helps and I also like the ideas the other women had about having seperate clothes for playing in because then if the stain doesn't come out all the way you don't have to worry about taking them outside of the home zone in them (haha). Good luck and congrats on the new arrival in January.

I have 2 kiddos who are very active and would rather be outside.I gringe when their daddy takes them outside in new clothes not play clothes because the stains are hard to get out.I use Shout it is a huge container for 6-7 bucks now at Sam's the best way to use it to get stains out is wet the clothing first then spray it let soak in the cold wash cycle,if you use hot water it sets in the stains.I have heard of others using a cup of vinegar to the wash and baking soda and I plan to try this too.sahm of 2 kiddos

We use natural cleaning products so I don't use bleach or oxi-clean, but we do cloth diaper a little boy so I have some experience with getting out stains. For your whites, don't put them in the dryer, wash them and let them dry in the direct sunlight while they are damp. It might take a few days of sun, but I can usually get my diapers and white t-shirts clean this way. For your other clothes, if they are ruined, you could try dying them. You can get Dylon permanant fabric dye at Joann's or Walmart and it is really easy. Just follow the directions on the packet. The clothes will look brand new! We dress our son in a lot of darker colors because they don't stain as much. I know pinks and purples are hard to keep clean. Also, since its summmer and she's outside, you could just put her in her swimsuit or just a diaper and shoes! No staining possible and no laundry!

I don't know about how to get the stains out, but what I do is a buy granimals at wal mart cause they are cheap enough and make them her playing clothes. When she goes out to play I put them on her. I also have bought some clothes at the little bit used shop. Hope this helps.

For more organic stains, my mom always recomended dishwasher detergent, such as electrsol. works great for baby stains such as spit up and such. My other advice is not to put things in the dryer, seems to set stains forever. Mother also recomends sun bleaching clothes, leaving them to dry outside in the sun. makes washed out whites white again!

Use cold water and dish soap to pretreat and scrub the stains before you put them in the wash.
Also, you could add a little 20 Mule Team Borax to your wash water, Biz bleach alternative, or Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (not baking soda .... "washing soda" ... it is found where you find the borax and Biz)
All have worked great for me, my mother, my grandmothers. Tried and true. ( and we all raised grubby little boys on very little money for new clothes ! LOL !)
:o)

SHOUT!! I have been using it with 3 kids. In the last 8 years I have saved alot of clothes and money. I spray it and leave it. Then right before I put it in the wash I spray a little bit more and throw it in. If for some reason I cannot get it out then I pre-treat again and wait. I highly recommend using the bleach pen on white parts. I have never had any problems with that bleeding into anything. Good luck!!

I use the spray and wash dual. It comes in a squirt bottle and works awesome! I have a 3 1/2 year old boy so we use a lot! You have to let it sit for a few minutes, but don't let it sit too long (more than a couple of hours) or it will take the color out of your clothes.

Would it be possible to designate some clothes as "play clothes" that she can play outside in, and then other clothes for other purposes like going shopping?

Have you tried Dawn Dishwashing Liquid? I use on almost all stains with great results,from grass, blood, mud even chocolate.

L.,

My best advise (I have 2 boys, so I know all about stained clothes!) is to just let it be. She is going to play, and get dirty...and there isn't a whole lot you can do about it.

Have all of those stained clothes be her "play clothes" and buy a few nice outfits for out in public. Make sure she knows which shirts are for play, and which are not. You might have to keep them in different drawers. Also, buy some dark blue denim jeans...this way you can bring her in from play, throw on a clean shirt and shoes and be on your way without having to change her pants all the time. I definitely suggest a second pair of shoes also.

I know that it might seem like a hassle...but you will actually be saving yourself time, stress, and money (oxy isn't cheap!) by just letting those stained clothes be her play clothes.

Also...don't buy anything white. Bright pinks (like fushcia) hide stains well, yellow shows EVERY stain. It helps to find out which colors show or hide stains best so you aren't wasting your money on something that will look dirty quickly.

Good luck~

I use the spray n wash duel action. But I don't wash it right away. I will squirt it on the stain and then let it dry. I've tried washing it quickly after the stain appears and pretreating with it then washing quickly but it never worked. If I let it dry into the stain though it gets anything my kids get into, out. I even used it on the donated baby clothes for my daughter. They were used and had old formula stains on them, but I went through and pretreated them all like that and *poof* out like magic. There were a few that were stained really bad and I had to wash twice but always with the spray n wash duel power first and let it dry on the stain.

Good luck with her stains!

I'm really surprised that the Oxy-Clean doesn't work. I swear by it. You might try the brand-name instead of the generic and soak the clothes for an hour. I have several plastic tubs that used to hold kitty litter and separate the clothes by color to soak (Oxy-Clean can make some colors run!!!). I usually pre-treat tough stains before soaking them in Oxy-Clean by putting some detergent on a scrub brush and scrubbing the stain.

Try Prell, peroxide, or WD-40.

There's stuff on the market called Zout. I have used that with pretty much success and it's really not that expensive. I also found out that I needed to keep a few sets of clothes to be non-play clothes. My kids have their "outside" clothes and then a couple of "we're going out" clothes. Hope this helps! Good luck!

I keep a bottle of my favorite stain remover (mine does happen to be spray-n-wash..the foam NOT the spray bottle) in every bathroom. When the kids (or my husband!) get undressed for the night I quickly treat their clothes then put them in the dirty clothes basket. It has worked for me:-)

Get a bucket and fill it with warm water, add oxyclean and soak over night!

I use Melaleuca laundry products...Prespot and Melapower. You have to join their store (like a Sam's/Cosco membership) but their products are great and eco-friendly. I recommend them, because even my daughter's "organic" poo stains on her onsies would come out with no problem.

Good for you and your daughter that you are not afraid of her getting dirty. It may change some day, so enjoy it while you can. My daughter played soccer as a goalkeeper and muddy days were her favorites, she would dive in front of the goal just to get muddy. She's 21 now and played 4 yrs college soccer.

But, you're wondering about her clothes. If the kind of dirt you are talking about is soil, you may have silty soil where the silt is very difficult to get out. Your best bet is to soak them immediately. A friend of mine used to hose his boys down outside, have them take their clothes off wet, then put them in the washer. Clays can also stain. You may want to try a pre treat product that is designed for organics.

If that doesn't work, and the other suggestions you get here don't work, don't worry about what people think. You may want to save an outfit or two for going out in public ( try Goodwill or other thrift stores), but, really, what does it matter?

You might try a product they have at Dollar General. Unfortunately I can't remember the name. LOL It's in their laundry pretreat section. It's in a white, round tub. I think the name is S30 or something like that. It's very similar to what mechanics use to clean their hands. I use an old toothbrush to apply it. Let it set for several minutes before washing. It works well on things that other pretreaters don't, so hopefully it'll help with the dirt.

I can certainly sympathize with hating the stains on my child's clothes. My oldest had bad reflux until he was about a year old. It could be almost time for his next bottle and he could still spit up part of the last one. Don't fret over it. We've all been there, done that.

Good luck!

I see you have all kinds of good advice...this is a wonderful site.

One thing I have to warn you about is NEVER mix laundry detergent and bleach...Several cases have made it to the news about people who have done this and were found passed out from the fumes...not just the person standing at the washer, but the entire house. One incident was at an apartment building, and people in several apartments surrounding the laundry room were affected. Very dangerous.

Don't worry if you seem to be a bad parent. My daughter is the same way, and one thing you need yo keep in mind...if anyone has kids, they know how hard it is to keep kids clean. I see it as a kid who has had a fun day playing.

Have you tried Shout or Shout Advanced? I have three boys that find ways of getting grass green on everything. It always works great for me.

Hi L., What great advice you have received. I am going to try just about all of them myself. Have 5 gr kids who are stain magnets also. When one mom sends a couple of them over for the weekend, I think gee couldn't you find cleaner cloths. So this will help her also, she has 3. :) 9,7, & 4 next mo.
The other 2 I keep daily 3 yr old and 8 mon old, boys. They are stain magnets also. Love's the outside, since I help sometimes mom # 2 with her laundry sometime I will suggest these tips to her as well. She works full time, other daughter in law is SAHM.
Thanks all you Awesome mom's out there and Thank you L. for asking the question ;)
Let the fun begin!!!
K. aka Nana

Hi L.,

My name is Pam I would recommend a product that I use called Pre-Spot. It gets out everything from grass stain to figernail polish. If you go to this website www.saferforyourhome.com click on Products and then Pre-Spot you can see some of the demonstrations. They also have some other products that are so much safer for your family.

I teach people how to have enviromentally safe products in their home without spending any new money.

www.eco-safehome.net If you would like to get more information just fill out the contact for more information and I will call you when it is convient for you.

My name is Pam I live in Kansas City, Missouri. I was born and raised in St. Louis Missouri. Looking foward to meeting you....

I use Oxy Clean and an Ecover stain stick to treat stains. Most of the time they come out, sometimes they don't. I only do laundry one day a week, usually on Saturdays, so I treat the stain as soon as it happens (as long as I know it happened!) and then put it in the laundry basket until laundry day.

Is it possible for you to separated your daughter's clothes? Some that are for everyday play and others that are for going out and special occasions. Maybe you could put the stuff she can wear any time at her eye-level and the things you save for going out away where she can't see them. Personally, I wouldn't care what people think of your daughter's clothes...as long as she's healthy and happy it really doesn't matter whether there are stains on her clothes. However, I know that sometimes you want your child to look "nice". It certainly can be expensive to keep kids in clothes that don't get stained, but it's garage sale season right now and there's always Good Will to find reasonably priced things.

My 2 girls are the same way, I found a miracle! DREFT spray stain remover is the best thing ever! It is usually in the baby isle at walmart. This also gets out my husbands grease, dirt, oil, or whatever. Give it a try! Good luck!

My 21 month old is the same, she is always playing in dirt/mud and spends most of her time looking grubby. I have bought some really cheap play clothes from Walmart/Target and she wears those when she is outside playing. When we're going out somewhere I change her into something nice. Personally I think little ones that age look cute when they are grubby, they are so curious and the grubbier they are the more curious they are.

HI L.,

I have two girls, who like your little one, love to play outside and get messy! My mom, who raised 4 rambunctious kiddos, and now myself, have had great luck with Zout! You can find it at Wal-Mart. I constantly have a couple of bottles on hand and use it at every washing. We also have play clothes for around the house and activities that require getting dirty. Don't worry about what others think. Kids are kids. Playing and getting dirty are how they learn! Good luck and enjoy the adventures of motherhood! A.

Shout Advanced Action Gel gets just about anything out. On the really tough stains, you might have to use it through two wash cycles (don't dry in between) but normally one round will get almost ANYTHING out.

Hello. I actually came across this by accident. I had forgotten a load of wet laundry in the washer, when I went out of town during Easter weekend. Of course, when I returned and went to do the laundry, the smell in the washer wasn't pretty.

I remembered what my mom had used once when she had done the same thing. She added vinegar to the wash and that helped. I also use oxy-clean along with my detergent. So not only did the wash smell clean, it looked bright (and I was doing whites)! I now use detergent, oxy-clean and vinegar with every load. It seems like the whites are whiter and the colors are brighter. I still put Spray and Wash or Shout on stains to pre-treat, as needed, prior to washing.

Good Luck!

Try and go to a yard sale and get some old clothes. That way her good clothes are for when you go out. I have three year old granddaughter and she loves to play in the dirt. When she is out playing thats what I do and when we go places she has good clothes. I hope this helpful GOD BLESS.

Dear L. G,
First of all relax she will out grow that tuffness one day in the mean time whites come clean when you presoak them in cascade and dawn is real good on colores.
If that isen't good enugh try scrubing them in with an old tooth brush before you wash them.
Hope this helps you out.
S.

I have 3 boys 11, 9 & 6 and they are constantly dirty! Then my husband gets pretty dirty at his job too. I have found that Shout is the best thing to get out stains. Of course treating the stain right away is best, but I have found that shout works even when you don't.

Don't fret....my daughter and my neighbor girl are exactly the same way. Anytime there is dirt or mud...they are in it! When my daughter was just learning to eat herself and refused to wear a bib...I was really bothered b/c her clothes were always dirty and so hard to get cleaned. I asked my neighbor what she used for her daughter's close b/c if she could get them clean, I could get anything clean. Her daughter likes to imitate animals and shortly after we moved next door, I found her in our front yard sliding down the little slope of mud where grass wasn't growing, on her stomach. She said she was an "elephant taking a mud bath". Her mom said she just used Cheer w/color guard liquid detergent. She mixed about half liquid and half water in a bottle and pre-treated the stains, then also washed with the detergent. It worked for me. I also use the oxy clean stain spray or bleach water mixed (for white clothes). I hope this helps.

I'm not sure if you've tried it but Shout Advance (blue bottle) is THE BEST!!. I'd buy it in truckloads if I could. I have a very active 4 yr old little girl and it's a miracle spray. I've even used it on those stained clothes that have been washed and dried and it still works.

Here my tips for keeping stains out of clothes, I have an active boy who attracts stains.

I don't leave dirty clothes in the hamper more than 2 days.
If this isn't possible, spray with Spray N Wash and rinse under warm water later in the day.
Wash them in warmer water, most kids clothes can withstand a warmer tempature. For any red based stain I spray with Spray N Wash right away and wash it that day.
I use brand Tide and use the Borax Powder.
I was the clothes on a longer cycle.

Hope this helps

You need to separate your daughters clothes and have those that are just for play. I know this is idealistic and maybe somewhat impossible, but it's the only solution to nip the problem in the bud. I would have a basket or cubby by the door (to go outside) with play clothes and play shoes in it and give her the responsiblity to do this. It could turn into something fun for her. Another great thing is Biz detergent. My mother use to soak everything in biz and it works!!

Hi L., What a coincidence, I was just going to post this same request this weekend! My problem is dirt, I cannot get this out at all. With 4 teenagers and a 10 year old girl and 5-almost 6 year old,very, very dirty boy and a very messy husband, I have alot of dirt. I kinow how you feel if you gotta run somewhere and the clothes look good execpt for that one faint stain that you can't get rid of. I'm going to try all the suggestions listed as well, thanks for asking this question. Good luck with the laundry and new baby!
M. B.

Hi L.! I am a mother of 4; a nine year old boy, twin boys who are 3 1/2 and a 1 year old daughter. My kids would live outside if I would let them:) I have tried everything also to no avail. So I decided that I would set back a certain number of outfits for leaving the house and the other stained, grubby looking clothes would be play clothes for home. This way I am not worrying about getting stains out of clothes and the kids can still have lots of fun outside:)Hope this helps!

The best thing I have found for stains is actually Baby Oxi-clean. I get it from Babies R Us. If I follow the instructions and wait the four-six hours before washing the clothes, I have gotten probably 95% of the stains out the first time. I have only ruined two outfits in four years, so it works great for almost everything. I did make the mistake of soaking a dark purple T-shirt in with some other items and that didn't come out so well, so be sure not to do that. ;oP Good luck! I know the stains are just SO frustrating.

Hi L.,

I know what you're talking about! I have 2 boys and live on a farm. Constant dirt everywhere!

We have set aside outside play clothes/work clothes and school/nice clothes. This has helped alot! Once the nice clothes become too stained off they go to the work clothes pile.

I do not know of anything to get the already set stains in your clothes, you know the ones that have ben washed and dried more than once with the stains still attached. But for future reference and new clean clothes, I recommend the Daisy Breeze Laundry soap by Daisy Blue Naturals. Only use 1 oz. per full load in a top load machine, 1/2 oz for a front load machine. You can use it as a pretreater too.
Let me know if you are interested in a sample.

Best Wishes,

J. Hobbs
Daisy Blue Naturals
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