Removing Ink Stains from Clothing and Furniture

Can you imagine my horror when I found a big black ink stain on my brand new microfiber sofa? After I finished freaking out, I looked at my personal knowledge and history on removing ink stains and got rid of the stain on my sofa. These tips that I used will remove ink stains from furniture and from clothing.

Start by blotting stains out of the fabric. If you are dealing with clothing, place paper towel under the stain while you work on the other side. Use a tiny bit of water to dampen the stain and dab, dab, dab out the stain until ink stops coming out on the paper towel or cloth. Be careful to not spread the stain by always dabbing with a fresh section of cloth. Allow the stained item dry naturally.

For the remaining stain, use hairspray to loosen more ink from the fabric. Continue to dab the ink stain using pressure to draw out the ink. If possible use a chamois (or shammy) type cloth to help with the absorbing action. Allow the clothing item to air dry. Using a clothes or hair dryer will set the stain, so let it dry naturally. When you can't get any more ink out of the stain, and by now the stain should be light, use drops rubbing alcohol to draw out even more ink and continue to dab the furniture. Be sure to do a spot test on the fabric before using the alcohol.

Any stain, if any, that is left will fade and disappear with laundering. Use standard laundry stain remover, and then wash the item. For furniture, steam clean the affected cushion to keep any ink stain from shadowing back. Re-wash or steam clean as needed to make the stain completely go away. I have found that it takes at least two washes after having dabbed out all of the ink I could.

Remember, do not take any short cuts with this cleaning process. Try to completely remove the stain from the fabric by dabbing and using the items mentioned. When the stain is just a light shadow, it is ready for regular laundering with stain treatment.