Nail Polish Stain

Nail polish allows you to decorate your nails in creative ways. The possibilities are practically limitless when it comes to paining your finger or toe nails, and many people use nail polish on a regular basis to create colorful designs.

Although it can be entertaining to use nail polish, it can have an unfortunate side effect: stains. The stains that nail polish can leave behind on various surfaces other than your nails can be very difficult to remove, especially if you go about it the wrong way. By using proper methods, however, you have a good chance of getting all or most of polish stains off of a surface.

Whether you find a nail polish stain on your clothes, a table, or the floor, you can try some simple methods to remove stubborn spots. If you need to get rid of a stain, try one of these ideas:

• Clothing. Did you accidentally drip some nail polish on your shirt or pants? Put the garment on top of a towel, then dab at the stained area with a cotton ball soaked with nail polish remover. When the polish transfers from the garment to the towel, resituate so you are dabbing over a clean part of the town. Continue until the stain has been removed, then wash as normal.
• Carpet. Try to remove as much dry polish as you can. Clean away what is left by dabbing the spot with a little nail polish remover on a paper towel or clean rag until the stain lifts away. If the polish remover doesn't work well enough, try using some peroxide or hairspray to remove the polish spot instead.
• Wall. To clean nail polish from a painted wall, wet a sponge with some rubbing alcohol. Scrub the spot with the sponge until the polish comes off, then wash the area with soap and water.
• Tile and grout. Although easier to clean than carpet, you still have to take action as soon as possible to ensure you don't damage the surface. Wipe up any excess wet polish carefully. Scrub using some powdered cleanser to help remove any remnants of the polish. If you need to, you can try scraping dried polish with a razor blade, but be especially careful to avoid scratching.
• Other flooring. Try removing hardened polish on other types of flooring by wiping it with acetone.

With the right tools, you should hopefully be successful in removing nail polish from just about any surface in your home. Take care to prevent spills and stains in the future by protecting surfaces with newspaper or another kind of barrier before painting your nails.