Chocolate. Grass. Red Wine. Blood… a laundry list of materials you don’t want on your laundry. Also possibly avant-garde names for an edgy brand of nail polish—another material you definitely don’t want on your clothing or on your floors.
One of the hardest things to remove from carpet, clothing, or upholstery, nail polish, aside from being gooey and often toxic, is also very stubborn and steadfast. Most lacquers are made of these common ingredients: resin (a type of polymer that holds the polish together), solvent to help it dry quickly, dispersants to help the solvents and resin mix, UV stabilizers, plasticizers, dyes and pigments, and micas (which create shimmer). When it dries, the lacquer hardens into the fibers of any kind of textile, making it extremely difficult to remove. On top of that, nail polish removers, which contain acetone, tend to bleach fabrics and leave chemical traces that create stains.
As with any stain, catching and treating the offending substance early is paramount. For carpets, you want to soak the offending stain with white vinegar, leaving a soaked rag on top of the stain for at least ten minutes. Blot the stain, and, once the area is completely soaked, scrub away the polish.
On clothes, dip a microfiber cloth in rubbing alcohol or vinegar, and soak the stain, blotting until the nail polish has been absorbed into the rag. Finish by using warm water with mild dish soap to get whatever residue is left.
PopUP CleanUp is an event and commercial cleaning company in the Greater Los Angeles Area.
