Tips For the Holidays | Wax Cleanup & Removing Food Stains

Tips For the Holidays | Wax Cleanup & Removing Food Stains

I absolutely love this time of year. It’s a time to celebrate love, joy and family. Sometimes the rituals can cause a little stress, though. Here are a few tips from Whirlpool and OurKidsMom’s house to help ease the stress so you can enjoy the company.

While you are decking the halls with festive lights and bringing out the holiday dishes and silverware that have been tucked away for the past year, don’t forget to freshen them up a bit.

Tip #1

  • Dishes a little dusty? If you haven’t used your holiday dishes since last year, take advantage of the rinse cycle on your dishwasher to refresh your holiday dishes once they have been pulled out of storage.

Many families like to burn candles alongside the holiday centerpiece. If you accidentally put them away coated in wax, there’s still help!

waxTip #2

  • Wax drip on your candle holders? In order to remove the wax, simply dip the item in boiling water to help soften the wax, remove what you can, and then repeat the process until all wax is removed. Place the washable candle holders in the dishwasher for cleaning and to get that final sparkle!

Tip #3

  • Blow the candle out too hard? Don’t laugh… it’s happened in our house! If it happens to get on the wall, scrape what you can off of the wall and wipe with a dry towel. Take a clean towel, place it over the remaining wax on the wall and place a hot iron on the towel. The heat will melt the wax and the towel will soak it up. This method works for fabric as well. Whatever you do, don’t put the waxy tablecloth in the wash without trying to remove as much as possible. The wax will melt and get on your other clothes.

Holiday meals can create especially difficult laundry stains. Here are a few tips to hopefully remove everything but the memory of the meal.

Tip #3

  • Cranberry sauce slip off the spoon? Remove any excess fruit from the cotton and run the fabric under cold water to prevent oxidation. Wash the garment in the warmest water safe for it. Use your bleach dispenser or add liquid chlorine bleach or color-safe bleach during the rinse cycle, after your detergent has done its job.

Tip #4

  • Turkey a bit too juicy? Apply a pretreat to the oily stain, or rub liquid detergent directly into it. Wash the garment in the hottest water safe for the fabric, then air dry and check it for any remaining stain. If necessary, repeat the procedure before placing the clothing in the dryer.

Tip #5

  • Overflow from the gravy boat? Scrape off any remaining gravy with a spoon or back of a butter knife. If it has already dried, brush off the residue. Rub in liquid detergent and then soak the fabric in a mixture of detergent and water for up to 30 minutes. Finish by washing the garment in the warmest water safe for it.

My overall suggestion with laundry stains is fairly simple. I have found the original Dawn (sold in the old fashioned bottle for around .99 at wally world) combined with a little scrubbing (soft bristle brush) gets out most if not all organic stains (food, grass, blood etc). If the stain is a little more stubborn combine Dawn with Tide as a pre-treater and let stand for 30 minutes or so. The biggest tip I can give anyone… if you still want to work at the stain do not put it in the drier! Heat will set it in making it more difficult (and sometimes impossible) to remove.

Happy Holidays!

 

“I wrote this review while participating in a Blog Tour for Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Whirlpool. I received a promotional item as a thank you for participating.”

Comments

  1. Megan says

    One other way to avoid needing the first Tip 3 – use a snuffer! Even a spoon will work if you don’t have one!

  2. Sarah says

    Another tip for getting candle wax out of carpet is to freeze it (I’ve used ice cubes in a ziplock bag pressed on the wax until it hardens) and then pick it out. It comes up much easier that way. The iron/towel combo also works, but it depends on the carpet.

  3. Gina Brickell says

    Thank you so much for the great tips. I opened this article up hoping it would give tips on how to remove wax from the walls believe it or not.. Not so much because of candles, but I have a wax warmer that I have sitting on the shelf at work that I don’t know how many times I’ve knocked it over and gotten wax all over the place.. On the walls, on the carpet etc. I’ve been trying to get it all off but having a difficult time!! So, thank you. Going to try the iron out!!

  4. Rebecca Sinclair says

    Excellent idea for tip #3! I would have never thought to use an iron to clean up candle wax. It makes perfect sense! Great ideas here…thanks for sharing!!

  5. Forgetting about refreshing the dishes is a tradition in our house. Everything is ready and everyone is more than hungry than I realise that I forgot to clean them before putting on the table…:)

  6. Jennifer Hedden says

    These are all great tips! I have never thought of just using the rinse cycle on the dishwasher to freshen up stored dishes. I have never tried dawn as a pre-treater. I will definitely try these tips. Thank you for sharing!

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