Salad dressing is a combination of an oily stain as well as an organic stain—and that matters because you’re going to treat both parts of that stain when removing it. The stain I will be removing happens to be apple cider vinaigrette, which, by the way, is delicious.
Here’s a Step-By-Step Guide to Removing a Salad Dressing Stain:
Watch the Video: How to Remove a Salad Dressing Stain
Step 1: Use Vinegar and Water
First, we’re going to use the vinegar and water because we want to cut that oil. We always want to get that oil out first because if you imagine an oily and organic stain: imagine the organic stain is kind of inside a bubble of oil. So what we’re going to do is spray it with 50/50 vinegar and water—which you know how I love that—and we’re going to dab with a cloth.
Step 2: Blot and Scrub
We’re going to scrub (I mean, did I say dab? Because you know you always hear people say “blot gently toward the center”... those people can’t get stains out. That’s the reason why they say that, because they’re afraid! I can get stains out, you can get stains out—we’re going to blot with some serious strength).
Then we’re going to take your horsehair brush and stain bar, and we’re just going to scrub the stain. What you're going to find is it’s going to come right out.
Step 3: Treat with Vinegar Again
Let’s say this was red wine vinegar, we might use a little oxygen bleach. But for this stain, stain bar and horsehair brush is totally going to take it out.
Then you’re going to repeat with the vinegar. The reason we’re going to repeat with the vinegar and water is because if you imagine there was oil, then there was a layer of apple cider vinegar, and then there’s another layer of oil—so we want to get that off too.
So there we go. You can actually see the stain has come off onto the white cloth.
The stain has come out of the shirt—so now we’re going to throw the shirt in the washer. I’m going to show you in a few minutes, the stain is going to be completely gone.
Step 4: Wash and Dry
All right, after the wash and the dryer, the song of the salad ballad is no more. It’s going to take a little ironing, but no biggie. Then put it back on the hanger, and it’s ready to wear again!