In the practice of aromatherapy, essential oils are frequently utilized as a treatment. In addition to that, you may use them to make your own household cleaning products or put them in an aromatherapy diffuser to relax. Be careful, as essential oils have the potential to leave stains on our clothing.
Clothing may become discolored if essential oils are spilled on it. There aren’t many ways to get rid of these stains before they set in and can’t be removed. To readily remove essential oils from your clothing, you can use a number of things that are typically found in households, such as dish soap or rubbing alcohol.
In this article, we will go over some simple techniques that can be used to eliminate oil stains from clothing.
Do Essential Oils Ruin Clothes?
In general, essential oils will not ruin the fabric of the garments you wear. However, they are capable of leaving unsightly stains. The type of cloth used and the severity of the stain both play a role in determining how straightforward the removal process will be. There is a possibility that essential oils will leave greasy markings or oil stains on the clothing you wear. This will be determined by the components, the method of production, the colors, the dyeing procedure, and other factors.
In spite of this, many oils, due to the plant compounds that are contained in the oils, will produce unsightly oil patches. There are some essential oils that are more likely to leave a stain than others, such as jasmine, patchouli, and vetiver.
How To Get Essential Oil Out Of Clothes
To readily remove essential oils from your clothing, you can use a number of things that are typically found in households, such as dish soap or rubbing alcohol.
1. Rubbing Alcohol
In its capacity as a solvent, rubbing alcohol can be used to dissolve oils. Because of this, it is an affordable and efficient method for removing essential oil stains from clothing. In order to complete this process, you will also require a typical bar soap, such as Ivory.
Make sure that any extra moisture is removed first so that the alcohol does not have to break down as much oil as it normally would. Apply to rub alcohol to the stain with a clean cloth or sponge that has been dipped in alcohol and then blotted on the stain until the affected area is completely soaked.
Hold off on moving this for the next 5 minutes. Scrub the wet area with a bar of soap in a circular motion until it smells and looks good and soapy. Last but not least, give the item the last wash in hot water.
2. Baking Soda
Because it is so effective at soaking up oils as well as aromas, baking soda is an all-natural product that can be utilized for the removal of essential oil stains.
Having said that, baking soda might or might not completely get rid of the discoloration. After the initial stage of pretreatment with the baking soda, you might have to complete several further procedures.
Apply some moisture to the garment using a spray bottle filled with clean, hot water. Combine a few tablespoons of baking soda with a sufficient amount of water to make a thick paste. You want it to look like gritty toothpaste. Apply this paste to the affected region and massage it in. Don’t be afraid to work it into the fabric’s weave; it will only help. This may be accomplished very effectively using an old toothbrush.
Allow the paste to rest for approximately one hour. Remove the paste by rinsing it off with hot water, and then check to see if any staining has been left behind. The approach with baking soda is most effective when applied to a damp stain, as this helps to remove some of the excess oil from the fabric.
Having said that, you can use it to treat an older stain as well, particularly for the elimination of odors. You can also use certain types of gel stain removers in place of a baking soda paste, though baking soda is definitely going to be less expensive!
3. Baby Powder
If you have young children living in your home, there is a good chance that you also have a bottle of baby powder stashed away in your medicine cabinet or in the area designated for changing diapers. This oil-absorbing solution has a lovely aroma and performs an excellent job with a wide variety of different oils.
Shake approximately one tablespoon of baby powder into a small dish or into your hand that has been cupped. To ensure an even and complete coating, dip a cotton ball or a soft sponge into the powder. To remove the stain, rub the cotton ball that has been covered in the stain. Let it sit for five minutes. The next step is to shake the clothing out over your bathroom sink or your kitchen sink. Examine the area to determine whether there is still any staining.
4. Dishwashing Soap
Dish soap is certainly something that is never in short supply in your house. This simple and low-cost method is effective for removing new stains. Because dish soap is so effective at cutting through grease, you may also use it to remove stains that have been there for a longer period of time. On the other hand, there is a lower probability that it will completely remove a stain that has dried.
To begin, test whether the stain can be removed by squirting a little amount of soap straight onto the spot. Make sure the soap is thoroughly rubbed in by doing so with an old toothbrush, sponge, or rag. The afflicted region should be washed thoroughly with warm water. If that didn’t work entirely, try adding two tablespoons of soap to one gallon of warm water and mixing the two together. You should give your garments about twenty minutes to soak in this solution.
Apply the soap, give it a good scrub, and then rinse it off! You can use this scrub as a pretreatment for particularly hard stains and then move on to another approach, such as adding rubbing alcohol, once it has been proven that this procedure will completely remove a fresh stain. Alternatively, you can use this method to remove fresh stains altogether.
5. The Oil of Eucalyptus
Cineole and eucalyptol are both components that can be found in eucalyptus oil. In addition to its applications in the health and flavoring industries, it is also useful as a degreasing agent. In addition to that, it inhibits the growth of bacteria, which is a nice benefit! Before you attempt to use this procedure, you should perform a safety precaution by first testing a minute amount of this substance on an inconspicuous part of your clothing.
Directly on the affected area, use five to ten drops of eucalyptus oil and massage it in. Wait fifteen minutes before touching it again. Rinse the item of clothing, then check to see if it still has any stains on it! You can also try filling a pail with hot water and adding one to two capfuls of eucalyptus oil to it. This method is more effective for larger stains. Give the clothing an hour to soak in this solution before removing it.
6. Run a hot cycle wash on your clothes
You also have the choice of doing a hot cycle wash with your clothing when you launder it. If you want to know how to remove essential oil from clothes, washing them in hot water in the most intense setting possible is a good way. First, give a standard hot cycle a shot.
In the event that it does not work, you should wash the garments using the hottest cycle that your washing machine offers. The procedure of washing with hot water increases the likelihood that the oil will be eliminated from the product.
Final Word
Essential oils may impart calming and pleasurable aromas into many different parts of your home, vehicle, or place of business. However, they can leave stains on clothing.
To get rid of these stains, you can choose from a few very straightforward approaches. You have been presented with a variety of options, both in terms of procedures and goods, for removing essential oil from clothing.
