A Step-By-Step Guide To Removing Sweat Stains From Your Favorite Clothes

One of the worst parts of summer is your gross body ruining your favorite white t-shirts–nothing really ruins the effortless style of a white tee and jeans than copious sweat stains. Learning how to remove sweat stains will lengthen the life of your clothes and keep your outfit looking cute without the distraction of being afraid to raise your arms. You can’t stop your body from being human and producing sweat, but you can limit the damage done by doing some sweat-stain-specific treatments when you do your laundry.

Also, did you know that it’s not actually your sweat that causes the stains? It’s likely the aluminum in antiperspirant that causes the stains, so the whole “sweat stains” thing is kind of a misnomer. I guess “aluminum antiperspirant stains” don’t have the same snappy ring.

There are multiple options when it comes to removing sweat stains–I’ve heard that people use anything from lemons to vinegar to table salt. In my experience, baking soda and aspirin are the two most effective methods, and they couldn’t be easier. Ideally, you should do this once a month or so, so that the sweat stains don’t build on top of each other and get worse. It will be much easier to treat mild stains than ones that have been accumulating for years–trust me.

Start with the baking soda option.

1. Mix four tablespoons of baking soda with a third of a cup of warm water. Set it aside.
2. Run your gross sweat stains underwater.
3. Apply the paste to the stained area.
4. Rub it into the stains so that the garment absorbs the paste.
5. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes and up to an hour.
6. Rinse the paste out, and then wash your shirt like normal.

If your stains are really, really deep in there:

1. Crush up three aspirin pills and dissolve in 1/4 cup of warm water.
2. Soak your stains in the mix for a few hours.
3. Wash as usual.

Photo: Picsfive/Shutterstock