By Guest Contributor Cleaning Tips • Do It Yourself 0 Comments

How to Remove Ink Stains from Clothing

Unfortunately, pens leak. And when they do, the ink stains anything and everything it touches. There are so many faux remedies for removing stains from clothing but very few of them actually work. The good news is that ink stains can be removed from your leather and other clothing if treated properly. This means if you catch it in time and follow these steps before putting your clothes into the washer you might have a chance.

We’re going to take you through the process of how to remove many kinds of ink stains. Ink stains from ballpoint pens, permanent ink, and even washable markers (easily washable on surfaces, not fabrics), that stain your fine leather and fabric.

How To Remove Ink From Leather

Before you try to take on a leather stain you need to determine what type of leather is it first. There are a few different types of leather including suede, vinyl, pleather, faux, and smooth. If your garment is suede or smooth leather, you need to take it to a dry cleaner that specializes in cleaning leather. Those types of leather are often the most expensive and you don’t want to ruin your chances with it. Besides, dry cleaners are trained to get those types of stains out – they can help you.

If your garment is vinyl, pleather, or faux and you have an ink stain you can begin cleaning it with the following method:

Take isopropyl or rubbing alcohol, (works best for DIY removal of ink stains from leather), and begin by dampening a white cotton cloth or swab with the alcohol. You want to use a white cloth for this because a colored cloth can transfer its color to the leather. You don’t want to create an even bigger mess. It’s also important to know that the fresher the stain the easier it will be to remove it.

You should work from the outside in, dabbing gently with the cloth. Keep the work area small so you don’t risk spreading the ink. You should be able to see the ink transfer to the white cloth almost immediately. Use a new dampened area of the clean white cloth ink coming off to prevent re-staining the garment. Do this nice and gently until the stain is removed. Allow your garment to air dry afterward and/or between treatments if you have to do it multiple times. And you my friend, will have an ink-free piece of clothing.

How To Remove Washable Marker Ink From Clothes

The term washable marker doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s washable. Some of these markers are more washable than others. And some, just aren’t washable at all. If you have children then you know what I’m talking about. They can be a pain. But with a little alcohol and elbow grease, you can get the ink stains from these washable markers out of your beloved clothing.

Start by wetting a cotton swab with alcohol and testing a small piece of the garment to make sure it doesn’t damage it or cause discoloration. Look for a piece that’s not so noticeable just in case the alcohol doesn’t react well to your garment. If it doesn’t damage it, you’re good to go. You can start in on the stain by working from the outside in changing to a new swab as it absorbs the ink. If you find that traces of ink still remain on your garment after this process then it’s safe to move onto using products like OxiClean or Purex 2 color safe bleach. Following the instructions on the package, you’ll want to submerge the garment in the solution overnight (at least eight hours) before washing. It’s important to note that depending on the garment you might have to repeat this process a couple of times.

How To Remove Ballpoint Ink Stains From Clothes and Fabric

For people who have a home office, you probably have a ballpoint pen on hand. These can easily get thrown in the washer on accident and explode all over your clothing causing a huge mess. Don’t worry, we’ve been there too it happens. But how do you clean that nasty mess up?

First, you’ll want to take some rubbing alcohol and a damp white cloth and test it on a small piece of the clothing to make sure the alcohol won’t damage it. And Just like any other stain, you’ll want to work from the outside in preventing the spread of the stain. If you find that traces of ink still remain on your garment after this process then it’s safe to move onto using products like OxiClean or Purex 2 color safe bleach. Following the instructions on the package, you’ll want to submerge the garment in the solution overnight (at least eight hours) before washing. It’s important to note that depending on the garment you might have to repeat this process a couple of times.

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