Pillows can become stained in the colder seasons as people crack up their radiators, which can make you sweat more at night, but there is an easy way to get them white again.
Sarah Macklin, a cleaning expert and founder of Dream of Home, has shared that yellow stains on pillows are nothing to be embarrassed about as they occur naturally due to sweat and natural oils in our hair.
She said: “The more moist and humid the bedroom is, the more you will sweat and perspire at night, and so the more quickly such stains will appear.
“Eventually, the stain will go through the pillow case and begin to stain the actual pillow itself. For this reason, it’s important that your pillows and mattress all have good-quality protectors on them.”
Getting pillows clean again does not require spending hours doing the laundry or buying pricy cleaning products as Sarah has shared the most effective stain removers are white vinegar and baking soda.
Sarah said: “You may find that, no matter how many times you wash your pillowcases, they still come out yellow. This can mean that, while your bedding is clean, it doesn’t look it.
“I’ve found that the best way to get rid of these yellow stains is use white vinegar and baking soda.”
It may sound strange that the best cleaning solution is sitting in your kitchen cupboard, but vinegar can dissolve through organic stains such as sweat and oil due to how acidic it is.
Not only can vinegar get rid of tough stains on white fabric but it is also a natural fabric softener as well as antibacterial so your pillows will become out much more hygienic and softener.
Baking soda helps boost the stain-removing properties of vinegar as it is mildly alkaline and can also whiten fabric to make sure the stains are completely removed.
Sarah added: “The white vinegar dislodges any oils left in the fibres and the baking soda is a natural whitening solution.”
How to get rid of yellow pillow stains
To begin, fill a bathtub or sink with warm water, then add half a cup of white vinegar and half a cup of baking soda.
Submerge the pillows in the water and leave them to soak for at least one hour, but leave them overnight if you are dealing with very old stains. Drain the water and rinse the pillows under cold water.
Then simply ass the pillows to the washing machine along with any other white bedding and wash on a regular cycle.
Once you take the pillows out of the wash they should be completely cleaned and stained free once again, but if they still look dingy then try soaking them in the white vinegar solution for longer.
Place the pillows on a low-heat setting in the dryer or hang them outside if you can as sunlight can also naturally white fabric and help get rid of stains.
Make sure the pillows are completely dry before putting them on your bed again to prevent horrible smells or mould, then your pillows should be completely restored.
