The lazy launderer

A sponsored post for Vanish Napisan

Vanish NapiSan have created a new online platform known as The Tip Exchange where you can enter your own stain queries or help others solve their tricky stains. 

Every single day I wash. I suppose it just comes with the territory when you have a family, kids, visitors and life. The basket gets filled, and emptied and usually all with a pretty tight turnaround time. But there are some areas of my laundry that are a little, ahem, behind. Like my wedding dress. That is STILL sitting in its bag from my wedding night covered in red wine stains and chocolate gelato. I think I missed that window, seeing as it was, oh, 8 YEARS AGO. But there’s other things, mostly my good stuff, that is neglected in my wardrobe.

Let’s take for example this frock I wore to our Winter Ball in JUNE. It looked fab on the night, but 3 months later it was looking a little, shall we say, unfresh.

Ball

And that’s no one’s fault, but my own. I left it in an unwashed heap at the bottom of my wardrobe and life got in the way. One trick I got from one of my good friend’s Mum was to throw your fancy, unwashed gowns into a bath and let it soak for a good 24 hours in Vanish NapiSan. And you know what? It works! Every time. Even after 3 months. Here look!

Unfresh indeed. Red wine down the front. Long story, but let me tell the other person was far worse off than I. Moving floral arrangements off a table with a full bottle of red nearby was NEVER going to end well. Poor Arthur and his crisp white shirt…

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More stains. So classy like.

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And then on the back an unidentified mud stain from when I walked into a ditch on the way home and promptly landed on my bottom.

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And then what I like to call miscellaneous stains at the bottom of the frock as it dragged around on the old floorboards in the hall.

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I draw my fancy frock a deep, hot bath with a good couple of scoops of Vanish NapiSan in the water.

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And then I throw that frock in there to marinate in that stain removal goodness for a good 24 hours.

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Here it is a day later.

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Check out the stains and if there are any still there I usually just give it a good rub together and they will lift easily. After a good rinse and wring out, it’s out into the sunshine for another full day. This frock has to be hung off the guttering because it’s so long!

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And look! No more red wine. Mud or miscellaneous! Pretty good hey?

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Obviously check whether your fabric can get wet without being ruined, but I haven’t looked back since I was taught it. Yes, even 3 or 6 months later!

You can read other stain tips on The Tip Exchange and from now you could win $100 just by submitting your tip!

What’s your lazy laundry item?
Tablecloths? Fancy frocks?
Anyone else still not cleaned their wedding dress?

Comments

  1. Yep, my wedding dress is in a bag in the cupboard too. Shoved in there the day after, but it was only two years ago so I don’t feel so bad now! Plus, it only cost $160, and I plan on never needing another one ;0)

    • BabyMacBlogBeth says

      Exactly! I just can’t believe I spent as much as I did on my frock and didn’t bother getting it cleaned…silly girl!

  2. Lisa Mckenzie says

    You are so lucky that gorgeous Frock came clean Beth .No I am the opposite of the lazy launderer I am the OCD of washing I wash everyday ,normal clothes I don’t really care about but my good ones ,no siree they get lovingly handwashed and hung on a hanger,dried in the shade and put away quick smart 🙂

    • BabyMacBlogBeth says

      Good on you! I should do this considering the amount you sometimes pay for a fancy frock…my wedding dress is the worst!!

  3. Wow, that’s impressive! I am also a lazy launderer, so excited to try this technique. Love your dress, Beth 🙂

    • BabyMacBlogBeth says

      Thanks Sally! It’s an old school Studi Baker Hawk! Remember that label from the 80’s?! Good luck with your frock 🙂

  4. Linley Simons says

    I’m so glad I’m not the only person with an dirty wedding dress years later. I’ve been married 8 years too and it’s been hidden in a bag ever since. I’m almost afraid to look at it, it’s possible some of the dirt included on mine is seaweed attached to the bottom…

    I wonder if the bath soak would work on it?

    • BabyMacBlogBeth says

      If the fabric can handle a good wash then I reckon this could be the answer. I am going to test a part of mine and see how it goes and then have a crack. Can’t be any worse than scrunched up in a bag at the back of the wardrobe can it?! Let me know how you go if you do try…

  5. Bree Di Mattina says

    Woolen items. I feel like I need to accumulate a few before putting on a load. My mum took my wedding dress off for the royal treatment the day after the wedding. Awesome lady.

  6. My wedding dress is still not cleaned, it’ll be 9 years in December :-O The cost put me off at first, then we moved a couple of times and I didn’t get around to it. I tried it on last year on our 8th anniversary, it was a little too big! My girls loved seeing me in it 🙂

  7. Annaleis Topham says

    I had my Mother in Laws wedding dress cleaned for her for their surprise 40th wedding anniversary. Surprisingly the red win did come out and only left a small faint spot where it was. She was so happy I’d had it cleaned for her. I’d give yours a go – they have specialist wedding dress cleaners just for this.

  8. I am another with a most definitely Not Clean wedding dress – 13.5 years later (kinda glad I am not the only one!) I am ok at keeping on top of machine wash items, but the depths of my laundry basket holds hand-wash only clothes from last summer…some of which I actually washed today!

  9. Thank the Wedding Gods – I was feelng so guilty for having my wedding dress shoved up the top of our wardrobe for the past 8 months un-drycleaned. I’ve got so much other shiz to pay for, I can’t justify another $250+ to dryclean a dress I’m never going to wear again!
    Meanwhile, everything else I can seem to get clean with a sprinkle of NapiSan on a cycle longer than my usual ‘Quick30’ on my LG front loader…!

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