Ask Mrs. Clean: House Cleaning, Stain Removal and Organizing Tips

[jarrott1]

I had a pink color bleed onto white while soaking a barkcloth drape.
It bled onto white background. How can I get the bleed out?
thanks
jim

[mrscleannw]

Hi jarott1,
Welcome to the forum!
Assuming the drapes are cotton material barkcloth, you should be able to safely remove the discoloration with this simple fix. You probably already have what you need in the medicine cabinet.

Either take the drapes down (if you can) and lay flat. Moisten a clean dry white cloth with topical solution hydrogen peroxide 3%, then gently dab onto the discolored area of the fabric. Hydrogren peroxide converts to water when exposed to sunlight so you do not need to rinse it. It should safely remove the stain, leaving you with a white drape again. It may take a few applications to completely remove the colored stain. Be sure to test an inconspicuous area first.

The hydrogen peroxide can be found at any drug store. The same strength used for scrapes and cuts (3% stabilized) will work just fine.

I tried this when red wine was splashed onto my white cotton vertical blinds in the kitchen. It completely removed the stain with no discoloration and worked great!

Good luck and let me know how it goes.