I wanted to re-visit my stain post and tell you that I GOT IT OUT! I posted a picture at the bottom of the post because I can't figure out how to get it where I want it using the iPad app. I should have taken a "before" but I forgot. Anyway, the sleeve used to have a big brown spot, and now it is white again. THANK YOU for all of your help - I used a combination of your suggestions and what I found on the internet. Before I tell you what I did, I wanted to summarize the results of my research and suggestions for you in case you're ever in stain trouble:
- Oxibath: fill a huge pot halfway full with water and bring it to a boil. Take it off the burner, put a scoop of Oxiclean in, and then drop your garment(s) in. Let it soak for as little or as long of a time as you'd like. Repeat if necessary.
- Dirtex - a product sold at Home Depot
- Powdered dishwashing detergent - wet the stain, make a paste with the detergent, and then I'm assuming use some kind of brush to work it into the stain.
- Hydrogen peroxide - the kind you get at beauty supply stores for hair treatments.
- Dawn dish detergent used as a spot treatment
- Don't dry in the dryer until the stain is gone - it will cause it to set.
- Sunlight is the best bleaching treatment.
Perhaps my favorite piece of advice was from Tammy, who told me that her mother always told her that if you can't see it from an airplane, it's not that noticeable. True story indeed, which I was totally going for until I decided to just see what I could do.
In the end, I remembered that my Mom and Granny always swore by Dawn for everything, so I pre-treated the dress by spot cleaning with Dawn. I literally poured Dawn on a toothbrush and gave the spots a good scrubbing, let it sit for an hour or two, rinsed with warm water, let it dry, and then repeated. I think I repeated three times, and it lightened it tremendously. Since it still wasn't totally gone and I was determined, I tried the Oxibath next. I will tell you that it is important to only fill the pot half full with water, because when you put the Oxiclean in, there are a LOT of bubbles and it will likely overflow. I would also recommend not putting the Oxicelan in until you've removed the pot from the burner and put it elsewhere - like your sink. We have a gas stove, and I didn't realize it would bubble as much as it did and it overflowed EVERYWHERE. Thank the Lord Dan was here to say we needed to clean it right away, because my plan was to wait until the water cooled off slash it was dry to clean it. This would have surely been a disaster, because the concoction sure did get down in our gas line and I was sure I'd broken our stove in the process. Not to worry, my personal handyman slash husband took care of it. Anyway, I digress. I let the dress soak in the Oxibath overnight and then put it in the sunlight to dry the next morning, and lo and behold the stain disappeared! Just call me Suzy Stain Remover.
So, there you have it. Keep in mind that this stain was at least 16 years old (that's how old my youngest sister is, and she was the last one to wear it) - maybe even longer if Katy or I were the ones who spit up on it (my vote is Katy, ha!). I had no idea that even if you launder the garment, the bacteria build-up can cause the stain to reappear in storage. Motherhood teaches me something new every day!
I'm so glad the stain came out - she was going to wear the dress regardless, but it looks brand new now. More good news: I tried it on her yesterday and IT FITS - she's not too chunky for it! Plenty of room for her Buddha belly and thunder thighs. I sent Mom a picture of her in it, and Mom said she looks just like I did when I wore it. She also told me that upon reminiscing with my Dad, they remembered that my Gramma Eaker, whom Lilly is named after, bought that dress for me when I was a baby. It made me cry! How special that she'll get to wear the dress which was given to her mother by her namesake. Tears!
Lilly will have not one, but TWO firsts this weekend: first night without Mom and first time with a babysitter! I am heading out shortly for my first overnight trip without Lilly, and I am a nervous wreck! I am excited to attend my cousin, Christie's bachelorette party for the evening, and I think Dan is excited for some Daddy/daughter time with Lilly and Layla, but I sure will miss them all. I'm sure I'll be a nervous wreck about the babysitter, too - I'll report back in another post. Hope your weekend is great, and don't forget to vote!
Sarah
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