Removing Mustard Stains

Mustard is a slippery filling in sandwiches, hamburgers, and hotdogs, and can easily end up on your pants or shirt after a bite. Here are some tips to removing the mustard from your garments.

Unfortunately, mustard contains turmeric, which is a yellow dye. This can make mustard almost impossible to get out of most fabrics.

If your shirt is white, and bleach safe, add chlorine bleach to the washing machine, and bleach the stain out. Be sure to check that the stain is gone before putting the stained item in the dryer—once mustard has been in the dryer, the heat will set the stain, and you will probably have a yellow spot on your shirt forever.

If your shirt is not white, and is made out of rayon, silk, or wool, try this: Scrape as much of the mustard off the top of the stain as possible—if the fabric is strong enough, scrape the surface of the fabric. Spray the stained area with dry cleaning solvent while scraping. Once you've scraped off as much of the mustard as possible, spray the remaining mustard spot with dry cleaning solvent until saturated. Blot the spot with a clean cotton pad, the kind used for makeup removal. If the stain is still there, rinse the area thoroughly, and try rinsing out the mustard with a vinegar and water solution. Blot away as much of the stain as possible with vinegar and water. If this does not work, try a spot remover product and blot again. Soak the stained area in water and apply a spot remover, leaving the spot remover on for up to 15 minutes before rinsing.

For other fabrics, start by spraying on a fabric stain remover product. Scrape off as much of the mustard stain as possible without touching the fabric. Rinse the stained area well in tepid water, and then apply a layer of liquid detergent. Dab at the stain with the liquid detergent. Rinse the detergent away. If the stain persists, soak the garment overnight in a sink filled with tepid water with a few squirts of dish detergent mixed in.

On an old or dried stain you could also try adding more mustard on top of the stain, letting it sink in, and then soaking the entire area in liquid dish detergent. Rinse, and then begin working on spot removal.

Another type of product that may work is an enzyme solution, or a cleaning product that says it works on protein-based stains. Remember to test any cleaning product before using it on a visible area of your garment.