Halloween Aftermath...

Late October is a wonderful time in America. The crimson and gold leaves falling in great layers, the bite to the air and the pumpkins that begin appearing on suburban thresholds all create a stirring in young and old alike. It may be that Halloween serves as the best relief to the accumulated tensions of the summertime, but it can also create a few of its own annoyances and inconveniences. While we here at Pearl Street Laundry enjoyed handing out candy and seeing everyone's elaborate costumes last night, we are also aware of all the new stains the season inevitably brings. Let us help you out with a few quick and easy tips to make sure that the scariest thing about your Halloween experience isn’t dealing with the messy aftermath.

The first thing that is likely to get your clothes come October is the gloopy entrails of the pumpkin you are carving. Learn more about getting that nasty orange stuff out of garments here. Carving the Jack-o-lantern doesn’t have to leave you looking like something out of a gory movie!

Then, of course, it is time to don your costume for a bit of the old trick or treat. The problem is the makeup now smeared all over that white blouse you just had to incorporate into your spooky zombie nurse outfit. How do we get that out? The horrors of trying to get an annoying smudge of eyeliner or lipstick out of your clothes are well documented, but there are ways to do it. You could bring it to us, or you could follow the guide here and do it yourself.

But if you are like us, last night's Halloween “mischief” mostly involved stuffing your face with loads of chocolate. Halloween makes a great excuse to indulge our sweet tooth. But what happens when you mix chocolate with a few cocktails and the dark candy goodness ends up on your outfit? Again, have no fear, we here at Pearl Street are versed in emergency chocolate stain removal.

If you can’t make it over to us, there are things you can do yourself. Scrape away the excess chocolate gently, trying not to rub it into the garment any more than you have to. Next, stick the garment under a cold tap, stain side down. Rub dishwashing soap in gently and then soak for about 15 or 20 minutes before laundering as normal. This should help you get rid of all but the absolute worse stains.

And lastly, there is the dreaded fake blood stain that seems to be ubiquitous this time of year. Whether you dressed as a vampire or a lobotomy patient gone wrong, you likely incorporated some of this gooey red stuff to set off your look. But have no fear, because Pearl Street Laundry has a top secret tip to remove that fake blood: Shaving cream! You can get the scoop on this laundry hack from an actress (who would know) in this youtube video.

So we hope you had a fun Halloween and that you keep your garments clean!