How to remove marker stains

We have all had those moments where we sit our child down to color and less than a minute later, he or she has colored everywhere but on the piece of paper! You find marker on the child’s hands, feet, arms, legs, and clothes. How should you tackle such a stain?

The advice I am going to give you is a bit non-conventional, so make sure to test the materials we use to remove stains on the inside seam of the clothing item. If the clothing is dry clean only, please take it to a dry cleaner and point out the stain to them. To tackle a marker stain, get a stack of paper towels, rubbing alcohol, and a cotton ball. Place the stained area face down on a stack of paper towels. Make the cotton ball wet with rubbing alcohol and dab at the back of the stain. Check the paper towels periodically to see if the stain is being transferred to them. Replace the towels as necessary so you don’t transfer the stain to another part of the fabric. Another option to use other than rubbing alcohol is nail polish remover. However, please check the inside seam again to make sure this does not damage the fabric. Use the nail polish remover as you use the alcohol, dabbing at the back of the stain.

Once you have removed as much of the stain as possible (the paper towels no longer show evidence of transfer of the stain), run cold water through the stained area to rinse out the alcohol and/or nail polish remover. Then apply a little bit of your favorite detergent (as always, my favorite is Purex Mountain Breeze) and let sit for 5 minutes. Launder as directed to on the tag of the clothing item. Before you place the item in the dryer, check to make sure the stain has been removed. If it has not, repeat the dabbing process and pretreating with detergent. 

Happy Stain Fighting!

Cleaning up after your kids’ crafting mess? Check out how to take care of Paint Stains