Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

Hello fellow CH parents,

Any tips on how to remove big blue ink blobs from beautiful white crested CH polo tops? Major pen leak while in transit which soaked through to white laundry!
Thanks in advance !

Tippex?!

Failing that, Vanish. Or baking soda.

In the 1950s when we wore awful yellow linen dresses for Sunday best, we used to soak ink stains in milk before handwashing them. Don't know whether it would work for whites, but often the old wives' tales have a glimmer of truth in them - and I definitely qualify as a old wife! Seriously though, these days I find Vanish pretty good, or Tescos equivalent.

Thank you all! Will try tippex, baking soda and milk. Vanish stain remover has helped to fade the blobs, but still there...

I think Tippex was probably a joke!!

Borax powder or bicarbonate of soda are pretty useful for ugly stains.

Do stain devils do one for ink?

pinkhebe wrote:Do stain devils do one for ink?

I found in my cupboard a very old Stain Devil named "Orange" which says it's for felt tip, ballpoint and "unknown origin".

Showing my roots buying the tippex suggestion...! Thank you to all again! Will try stain devil. My hands are now sandpaper from working on my stain project and tackling the iceberg of laundry that arrived home on Saturday. Ugh..

Ineedacoffee wrote:Showing my roots buying the tippex suggestion...! Thank you to all again! Will try stain devil. My hands are now sandpaper from working on my stain project and tackling the iceberg of laundry that arrived home on Saturday. Ugh..

No shame in that I fell for it too lol
Good luck with that stain though

You need to identify the major component of the ink and then apply an appropriate solvent. Alcohol (strongest Vodka you can lay your hands on) is ideal for felt tip pen ink, not sure about ball point, but if it fails you can, of course, console yourself by mixing the rest of the bottle with some orange juice and using it to cleanse your digestive tract .

icomefromalanddownunder wrote:You need to identify the major component of the ink and then apply an appropriate solvent. Alcohol (strongest Vodka you can lay your hands on) is ideal for felt tip pen ink, not sure about ball point, but if it fails you can, of course, console yourself by mixing the rest of the bottle with some orange juice and using it to cleanse your digestive tract .

Best suggestion on here. At least you won't worry about the stains afterwards !

If all else fails try diluted bleach...

Thank you all for your time and suggestions. After 6 days of scrubbing,12 washes and trying all suggested remedies - I can say that TESCO'S OXI WHITE STAIN REMOVER POWDER DID THE TRICK! ...god how boring do I sound...I will say the stains are still ever ever so slight but should be missed by most. I am very happy though considering the big INKY blobs that stared at me 11 days ago!
Love the vodka suggestion! Thanks for the laugh. I needed it!
X

You may be able to get rid of the very last of the stains by hanging the shirts outside on a sunny day. I've often been amazed by the stain removing power of the sun...