How to Remove Gum from Clothes
Photo by TOPHEE MARQUEZ from Pexels laundry washing bubblegum
Chewing gum is one of life’s few pleasures. The feeling of stress melting away as you chew… Oh yes!
But while chewing the gum is very pleasurable, getting it stuck somewhere isn’t. Even more tragic if it ends up on your clothes!
And let’s face it. There have been numerous times in our lives where, out of nowhere, a piece of gum sticks on our clothing and ruins our day.
Out of helplessness, some people would rather throw their clothes away than desperately remove the icky stuff. They can’t be blamed, though.
But this act is very wasteful, especially when the clothes haven’t even aged a lot. And so, being your friendly laundry experts, we give you this easy guide to remove gum… and save money!
Gearing Up laundry washing bubblegum
The process of removing gum is difficult yet very rewarding when completed. Patience, elbow grease, and unconventional methodology are your best friends here.
The first thing that you should prep is a sharp, flat-edged object. Old, expired credit cards, painting palettes, even a butter knife will do.
Then, prepare yourself a plastic bag (zip lock bags work best) that would fit your problematic clothing in. And of course, prep your freezer.
Why, you might say? That brings us to our next section!
Getting to Work
Fold the clothes as small as you could. Make sure that the part where the gum is stuck is facing outward.
Put your clothing inside the plastic bag. Freeze the entire thing and allow the gum to get as hard as it could.
When you feel like it’s hard enough, take out the entire package. Then, get yourself scraping off the gum.
You may have to do this repeatedly, as some gum stains are quite tough. Be careful too when removing the sticky thing as it may also bring pieces of the fabric with it and rip off.
After you have successfully removed the gum, you may notice some residue still stuck on your clothes. It would be best to pre-treat them as is appropriate to the type of fabric that has the gum stuck on them (check out our other articles for this!).
Once you are satisfied with the pre-treatment, wash your soiled clothing as usual. You can now use your clothes after it gets dried up- but be careful and avoid getting gum stuck on them!
Hold Up, Though!
It may feel like this is an easy chore (and it is). But there are some conditions that you have to satisfy.
Obviously, the methodology applies to most clothes, even more so when it involves relatively cheap, casual, and hard to miss.
But there are those rare and regrettable instances when the expensive and delicate pieces end getting gummed up. For this, you have to seek professional help.
You need to understand that the freezing and scraping method is a bit aggressive. So, when fabrics such as silk and velvet get themselves a bit banged up, it is best to take them to professional cleaners who can do the job for you.
Hit Us Up!
If you tried your best and still feel lost, don’t worry! Contact us, and we will help you resolve your problem.
In Singapore, and need some professional cleaning? We got you! We do pick up and delivery all over the island.
Everything has a solution, and we at Eazihome will help you do the work!
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