Whether your annual Thanksgiving dinner is smooth sailing or a marathon of emotional eating peppered by cringe-worthy questions from the family, we can all agree on one thing – we always enjoy the delicious food and quality time spent with family and friends! 

What we don't enjoy are any stains from accidental spills that may occur while eating.

If this happens, the best thing to do is to schedule a Rinse. Seriously! Turning over your stained items to garment care professionals is the number one way to properly treat stains and have your items looking new again.

But much like you, we (and our Cleaning Partners) enjoy a break once and awhile so we are not available for pickups on Thanksgiving. Don’t worry though – we've compiled a few helpful tips for dealing with stains on your own this holiday!

• After you spill anything the best thing to do is to immediately wipe off the stain (gently), making sure to not use downward pressure as it may accelerate “setting” the stain.
• If it is an oil stain, water only makes things worse so it is best to avoid using water when wiping oil stains.
• Food stains are complex. They are often are a mixture of water-soluble and non-water soluble stains and organic material, which is best taken care of via pre-spotting and then dry cleaning.
  • Butter Stains: Like most stains the key is to deal with butter stains fast. Salt is useful in absorbing the grease while the stain is still fresh and helps prevent the stain from soaking deeper into the fabric.
  • Gravy Stains: One suggestion we have is to carefully apply laundry prewash product and soak the soiled linen overnight in the washing machine using warm water with enzyme detergent and all-fabric bleach. The next day, be sure to drain the washer and start a new cycle using the hottest water setting and the type of bleach that is safe for the soiled fabric.
  • Cranberry Stains: First, try and scoop or scrape the excess cranberry with a utensil and sponge using a little cool water. You can then mix 1 tablespoon of white vinegar and ½ teaspoon of liquid laundry detergent into 1 quart of cool water. Soak the stained item in this for about 15 minutes. Rinse and dab the soiled fabric with rubbing alcohol if the stain still remains. Lastly, launder the soiled fabric as you normally would with a small amount of bleach added if you have it.

No matter what you’re eating this Thanksgiving take a moment to be grateful and enjoy the much needed break and time spent with loved ones! 

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Rinsing! 

 

Now that the warm weather is here, it's time to enjoy al fresco afternoons with wine and cheese. Yet, too often a great outdoor dining experience is ruined by the little spills that mark up your new blouse or pants. Whether you're exploring a new city, enjoying the outdoors or savoring a summer dessert, don't sweat the small stains that you may encounter during the summer with our on-the-go DIY cheat sheet to help you along the way.

Food and drink

Whether it's a box of French macarons, fresh blueberry muffins or chocolate ice cream, summer is the time to indulge in your favorite treats. And it's no surprise that food and drinks can lead to some of the most common summer stains.

Made a mess during Sunday brunch? No worries. Soak up the stain with a napkin, ask your server for some club soda, and lightly dab the stained area. You can take common summer fabrics such as cotton, corduroy or linen to the bathroom to be washed with cold water and soap (this works for iced coffee stains too). For more delicate fabrics, such as silk or chiffon, take them to a professional dry cleaner for the best care.

Since it's also barbecue season, mishaps with ribs or burgers are bound to happen. For fresh stains, act quickly by scraping off any sauce on the fabric. Follow up by soaking the stained area in water. You can apply the same tactic for ice cream spills: rinse and repeat under cool water as necessary. For more stubborn stains, follow up with a professional cleaning.

Sunscreen, sweat and deodorant

You might take advantage of the great weather by lounging at the lake or hanging out on the beach, in which case SPF is a must. If you get some on your clothing, apply pressure with a clean towel to soak up the product and add liquid detergent before laundering as usual.

While you may look great in that poplin sundress or white linen shirt, embarrassing sweat stains can foil your outfit—especially if you're wearing summer whites. To help preempt this issue, make sure you choose an aluminum-free (or low-aluminum) antiperspirant, which won't leave a mark. If your deodorant does leave an unwelcome blemish, a quick cleaning hack is to use fabric softener sheets to remove any traces by rubbing one on the affected area. For delicate fabrics like rayon, blot the area with some water and soap before gently hand washing.

Try as we might, some sweat stains will remain. And, they tend to get darker over time becuase of continued heat and sunlight. It's best to try to prevent them before they occur!

Grass and dirt

Whether you're hiking the Grand Canyon, having a picnic in Central Park or enjoying a game of frisbee in your backyard, you might encounter a few grass or dirt stains—not too surprising if you're the outdoors type. For dirt stains, apply some dishwashing soap right away before tossing the affected article in the laundry. For shoes caked in dirt and grass, this stubborn stain can be easily removed by rubbing it with a damp cloth soaked in soapy warm water. Grass stains on clothing, however, can be extremely difficult to remove, so if you find yourself with one, we recommend a trip as soon as possible to a professional.

If all else fails, get thee to a professional dry cleaner!

Worried about keeping your swimwear in tip-top shape? We've got you covered with our guide to cleaning and preserving swimsuits.

 

Photos: freestocks.org, Brooke Lark, Nadia Jamnik, Kyle Ryan

Often our favorite garments are those with good stories. Maybe that special piece of clothing was a gift or worn at a memorable event. But have you ever considered the story of the garment before it became yours?

The life of a garment is not a boring life, that’s for sure. From fiber to textile production, design, and fabrication, to transport and retail sales, every article of clothing is the culmination of lots of effort and imagination.

Historically, people held onto garments for a long time, but with cheap clothing now abundantly available, many societies throughout the world think of clothing as disposable. The staggering volume of new garments manufactured each year have made this paradigm shift possible.

Clothing Production

150 billion garments per year are produced in the global fashion industry, which means about 20 items per person.

Cotton is the most commonly used raw material for fabric in the world, with 60% of women’s garments and 75% of men’s garments containing some cotton. Once the cotton fiber is harvested, it’s spun into a fabric which can be easily cut to specific design requirements.

The fabric is sold to clothing manufacturers, who manage the actual production and fabrication of the garments. Once production is complete, garments are shipped to a distribution center, where they are stored until needed at retail locations.

The Typical Lifecycle of a Garment

After the garment is sold, it may be used once, dozens of times, or never at all, before it ends up being thrown away, repurposed, or recycled.

So how many times are garments generally worn? Although there is little data currently available, a detailed survey of almost 2,000 women found that the majority of fashion purchases see the outside of the wardrobe just seven times.

As a result, Americans sent 14 million tons of clothing to landfills in 2018, all while continuing to purchase new garments at a frenzied pace. To put this in more relatable terms, the average American now generates 82 pounds of waste just from clothes they throw away every year!

Adding to the concern, more than 60 percent of fabric fibers are now oil-based synthetics, meaning if and when our clothing ends up in a landfill, they don’t decay.

Despite these large numbers, a problem at such a massive scale does in fact start with actions at the micro level. How many times you wear your garments, and how you dispose of them once it’s time to let them go, both define the life of your garment.

According to the Council for Textile Recycling, nearly one-half of used clothing is given away for donations by the general public. Simply donating your used clothing instead of throwing it away makes a significant impact on the life of your garment, and there are incredibly convenient ways to make it happen.

With Rinse, clothing donations pickup is always free during any one of your scheduled pickups, and it is a great way to extend the life of your garments by giving someone else the opportunity to enjoy them. Another way to counteract the problem of excessive clothing waste is to increase the number of times you wear your garments. A good rule of thumb is to aim for at least 30 uses.

To get to 30 uses, it’s important to ensure the proper care and cleaning of your clothes. When washing clothes, use cold water, as it’s not only helpful in preventing color bleeding and fading but helps to preserve the strength and integrity of the fibers.

Additionally, you can switch from high or medium heat to low heat in the dryer, which also helps to increase the longevity of your garments and reduces the risk of shrinkage and malformation of clothes over multiple cleanings. Or working with Rinse or your local cleaner can help!

So next time you slip into your favorite garment, take a moment to consider not only where it came from, but also where it’s going. And when you choose to extend the life of your garments, you’re making a choice that benefits more than just your wardrobe.