How do you get food stains out of baby clothes??

[bumbleweed]

Any domestic goddesses on today?

Cooked tomato and plum seem to be the main offenders at the moment. Do I need to buy non eco-friendly 'stain-removers' from tesco, or are there any more traditional ways of getting stains out. I'm so undomesticated I dont even know whether you soak things in hot or cold water!

Help me please or dd is going to slowly ruin her entire wardrobe with baby-led weaning.

ya know, I've used the lot - really - and there are just some things that don't come out

sorry

buy some big plastic bibs

I find it is essential to take the stained clothes off as soon as possible and get them into soak (I use biotex and warm water).

Before washing I then vigorously rub a vanish soap bar over the offending area and I have an old nailbrush for really scrubbing over the soaped area.

This sometimes leaves small traces and I find that repeated soaking and vanish scrubbing /washing fades it after a few washes.

I've had to relegate a few things to floor cleaning cloths as with ds being at nursery all day, it is sometimes too late to get things soaked quickly enough, when we get home, to limit the damage but repeated attempts can rescue a few items.

I'd love to know of other tried and tested methods as we are about to bin a favourite jersy top with a crane on as I can't get the bloody orange stains out (although they now have faded to a mild yellow)

If someone had told me before I had ds that I'd get so interested in stain removal I'd have laughed in their face !

I have also resorted to bleach cleaner (ace brand) for the bibs that were so useful before ds decided he was too old to be wearing a bib.

I'd definately get some of those bibs with sleeves attached , they are invaluable.

The sun is the best thing in the world (especially for tomato). I tend to spray with vanish before the way (I think its the oxy vanish or something), and then put it in the sun to dry - even if you can't get it on the line, putting it in the window for a day or so will bleach it out.

The only thing I can never seem to get rid of properly is mud soaked apple (DD went through a phase last summer of dunking apples in mud , and then the neck of her dresses would be this lethal mud/apple combo that never came out properly).

thanks for the tips guys - what is biotex? I have some bleachy oxy something from betterware that I could soak in. Sunshine is the suggestion I like best!

where do you get those plastic bibs which curl up at the bottom to catch the food (like what we had as kids )?

Biotex is a stain removal powder that you add cold/warm or hat water too depending on how long you want to soak clothes for.

It's in most supermarkets in the stain removal section near the washing powders.

vanish oxi-action gel in with your washload does the trick for me!

I second the sun ! I usually put ACE in with the wash but it doesn't get out the tomato stains etc but a day out in the sunshine (when it is around) works wonders.

ok thanks normsnockers - will look more closely at the stain removal section in tesco - dont normally go there, but there was a lot of things we didnt used to do before dd!

boots I think do the curly bibs, also you can get them at supermarkets

i hate cloth bibs, nasty, readybrekky little rags of yuk

Ikea do some good plastic bibs. You can get the long sleeved ones from John Lewis.

I tend to soak stuff in vanish oxy-action for about 3 days, then add a scoop or two to the wash.

I don't know what stains they 'vanish' with a quick squirt in the ads but certainly nothing that's ever been on our clothes. Takes hours of effort to get the stains out of my DDs stuff.

I run item under cold water, put some washing up liquid on the sating then rub stain loads (the earlier you try and get the stain off the more effective it is, I also have a set of old shirts that I put on top of any clothes I don't want ruining and don't worry if they have stains on!

I run item under cold water, put some washing up liquid on the stain then rub stain loads (the earlier you try and get the stain off the more effective it is, I also have a set of old shirts that I put on top of any clothes I don't want ruining and don't worry if they have stains on!

oh thanks so much - you people are so knowledgeable - I knew I would get guidance here!! I think I need to invest in a bucket for soaking stained stuff, and some huge bibs!

I have always been a housework-dodger, and am gutted that my early fumbling attempts at solid foods have trashed some lovely clothes.

I use oxy-clean to pre-soak the bad stains and then I add a scoop to the baby's laundry. I agree that bibs are the magic solution if your LO will keep it on.

Just wait a little and they grow out of them anyway .

Try soaking them in a bucket of Napisan before you put them in the wash.

I used to pour boiling water over the stain before I put it in the wash. This used to take out most stuff including anything that was ORANGE!! brrrrrrrrrr. Big bibs with sleeves are a godsend.

Im having trouble with carrot puree. Vanish spray pre wash doesnt shift it. Might get Ace.

I washed DS's in Surf (99% of stains one) and then again in Fairy. Surf got the stain out, Fairy made clothes nice n soft for him.

Another vote for washing up liquid - use it neat on all stains before putting in washing machine.

still all these fairies and surfs and aces and oxys are not very eco-friendly eh? I only usually use ecover!

If you have one and the weather's good - After washing up liquid etc if the stain isn't fully gone hanging the washing on the line on a sunny day usually bleaches it out

Bumbleweed, I try not to worry about it as I reason that it's not very eco-friendly to trash a perfectly good shirt just because of embarrasing stains down the front.