I've never liked the color white. It probably has something to do with the fact that I grew up with well water, which would eventually transform everything white to a lovely shade of beige, and thus my mom would never buy anything white. It also partly owes to this creepy guy I knew, who used to bother me endlessly and who used to wear white often. And I don't mean a white t-shirt or white pants but an entire white ensemble. Creepy.
Since those well water days are long gone, I've gradually come to appreciate the crisp, clean color of white. The only thing I dislike, however, is the extra TLC that such a color requires. I grew up thinking bleach + white fabric = white(r) fabric but came to realize after a bit of Googling that fabric care isn't all this simple.
It wasn't until a good friend of mine came to visit and accidentally squirted her liquid foundation onto my white duvet cover that I realized that my "laundry truisms" were somewhat outdated.
I washed (and dried) the duvet several times -- with regular detergent, detergent and bleach, oxygen bleach and detergent. But sure enough after every wash and dry, the persistent flesh-colored spots remained unperturbed. I had basically given up the idea of removing the spots because surely, I thought, I'd given it a good go and, to make matters worse, I'd probably set in the stain further with each dry.
I decided to give it one last ditch effort and squirted a bit of Dr. Bronner's Sal's Suds (SS) that I had recently purchased (for kitchen use!) on a spot and rubbed. Like a miracle, I saw the foundation lifting, fading, and sudsing away and with it my growing amazement. After a few direct applications of Sal's Suds followed by vigorous rubbing, the entire stain was gone. Hubby was surprised since he had attempted to remove the stain with some chemical solvents (basically dry-cleaning fluid/PERC) before I began my washing routine. Even with his industrial chemicals, the stains remained. I really wish I had taken some before and after photos, but I hadn't thought to document the process since I thought the duvet was done for.
After this revelation, I've been using Sal's Suds to pre-treat any oil spots that I'm prone to accumulating on my clothes -- a few spots I can credit to an unfortunate old man with poor chopstick/motor control sitting next to me. :\ Without SS I'd resort to taking my stained clothes to the dry cleaners'. Thanks SS for saving my clothes, my wallet, and for your many other uses (works great as a car wash, dish pre-soak, kitchen counter spray, etc)!
Since those well water days are long gone, I've gradually come to appreciate the crisp, clean color of white. The only thing I dislike, however, is the extra TLC that such a color requires. I grew up thinking bleach + white fabric = white(r) fabric but came to realize after a bit of Googling that fabric care isn't all this simple.
It wasn't until a good friend of mine came to visit and accidentally squirted her liquid foundation onto my white duvet cover that I realized that my "laundry truisms" were somewhat outdated.
I washed (and dried) the duvet several times -- with regular detergent, detergent and bleach, oxygen bleach and detergent. But sure enough after every wash and dry, the persistent flesh-colored spots remained unperturbed. I had basically given up the idea of removing the spots because surely, I thought, I'd given it a good go and, to make matters worse, I'd probably set in the stain further with each dry.
I decided to give it one last ditch effort and squirted a bit of Dr. Bronner's Sal's Suds (SS) that I had recently purchased (for kitchen use!) on a spot and rubbed. Like a miracle, I saw the foundation lifting, fading, and sudsing away and with it my growing amazement. After a few direct applications of Sal's Suds followed by vigorous rubbing, the entire stain was gone. Hubby was surprised since he had attempted to remove the stain with some chemical solvents (basically dry-cleaning fluid/PERC) before I began my washing routine. Even with his industrial chemicals, the stains remained. I really wish I had taken some before and after photos, but I hadn't thought to document the process since I thought the duvet was done for.
After this revelation, I've been using Sal's Suds to pre-treat any oil spots that I'm prone to accumulating on my clothes -- a few spots I can credit to an unfortunate old man with poor chopstick/motor control sitting next to me. :\ Without SS I'd resort to taking my stained clothes to the dry cleaners'. Thanks SS for saving my clothes, my wallet, and for your many other uses (works great as a car wash, dish pre-soak, kitchen counter spray, etc)!
Dr. Bronner's Sal's Suds
- Great for oil removal (on clothes, dishes, etc.)
- Economical: a little goes a long way and, like other Dr. Bronner's products, it can be used for many applications
- Can be drying on hands, so I'd wear gloves for extended contact
- Ingredients are fairly pure and formulation is pretty simple. SLS may be a concern for some, but Dr. Bronner's asserts that SLS is safer/better than SLES. I think ultimately it comes down to whether you can trust Dr. Bronner's science and its sourcing and manufacturing processes.
