How To Clean Crayon From Clothes

Ever opened the dryer door and discovered that someone had left a crayon or two in a pocket? While you may have just had a panic moment, you don't have to stay there! In the 21st century, there are many ways to get crayons out of clothes. Ideally, you catch the crayon stain before you washed them. Even if you didn't, there are some handy ways to ensure your kids aren't walking around with crayons all over their garments. Here are tips on how to get crayon out of clothes .

Collection of Crayola crayons on a butcher block counter

HOW TO GET CRAYONS OUT OF CLOTHES

We've all done it or know someone who has. You open the dryer door and pull out the clothes only to want to shove them all back inside and pretend you never saw the mess. But don't let some melted crayons get you down. If you need to recuse any of the clothing items, there is hope!

Check out these ideas to help you and scroll to the bottom of the post for a quick reference card of ideas!

SCRAPE OFF EXCESS CRAYON

When you first notice the crayon in the clothing, it's important that you scrape off as much of the crayon as possible. You may need to use a butter knife or anything flat to help you get the crayon off of the clothes. You don't want to use something that will spread the crayon around because this could make it harder to get the crayon out of the clothing.

USE LIQUID DISH SOAP

After you have scraped off the excess crayon from the clothing, you will want to use liquid dish soap. Take the liquid dish soap and apply it to the area in which the crayon is in. Keep the liquid dish soap on the stained area for at least five minutes. Then run the fabric under hot water as you rub the fabric together.

USE HOT WATER

Although most people would think that you need to wash the crayon stained clothing in cold water, you actually need to use hot water. Along with the hot water, you will want to choose the heavy soil setting on your washing machine. If you have a setting similar to sanitize, I recommend that! It's the one that runs the hottest on my washing machine.

Melted wax takes the heaviest setting on your washer, so get ready. When you use hot water and the heavy soil setting, you will also want to put in some sort of clothing cleaner like Oxi-Clean. If you have stains on white clothing, you can use bleach.

TRY A STAIN REMOVER

If you have tried all of this and it's not working, then it's time to try a stainer remove. Stain remover can help get out set-in stains. If you aren't sure of what type of stain removers to use, I have a small list below of things that have worked for me in the past. While I can't guarantee they will work, it is a start to help you get the crayons out of the clothes.

Tide 2 Go Stain Remover
Shout Advanced Stain Remover
Zout Triple Enzyme Laundry Stain Remover

You can also try WD-40. I've used it on big wax messes in the past. But I'll warn you that it's a gross job. It smells terrible and you don't want the kids around. But you can spray over the melted crayon wax and let it sit before scrubbing it away. It's a pretty good way to get rid of the wax and the stain.

Crayon box with the top open and full of crayons

MORE IDEAS TO GET CRAYON OUT OF CLOTHES

When you are working with crayons, just know that it can be tricky. I find it best to try any stain removal on a small part of the clothing, you just never know how some clothing will react. If you catch the crayon before you've tossed the clothes in the washing machine, after you try and remove the stain, let the crayon stained clothing air dry, instead of drying in the dryer. Sometimes high heat can set a stain in, even more, making it harder to get it out at a later time.

Crayola crayons spread out on a butcher block counter

You might want to break out the Magic Eraser too. It works great for cleaning up the dryer. You don't want to leave behind any melted crayon in dryer or you'll have to start the process over again!

Crayons plus the dryer are not something any mom wants to see happening in her house, right?

If you've tried all of these ideas and still have remnants of the colors, you can repeat these steps as necessary! But if you're like me and you just decide to wave the white flag sometimes and toss the clothes in the trash, I don't blame you at all!

QUICK LIST FOR GETTING CRAYON OUT OF CLOTHES

For a quick rundown of the order of steps I recommend trying, here's a quick list!

Scrape off excess wax.

Use a knife to scrape as much off the fabric as possible.

Soak with dish soap.

Cover stained area and let sit.

Use hot water.

Trying the hottest setting on the washing machine.

Other stain removers.

Try a stain remover formula for set in stains.

Clean the washing machine & dryer.

Don't forget to clean melted wax out of your appliances.

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How to Get Crayons out of Clothes