How To Clean Gum Out Of Clothes

If you happened to leave that name tag on your shirt or your kids forgot to take the sticker of their shirt, you can be left with a mess on your shirt.

Stickers are notorious for leaving sticky residue and if your clothes happen to go through the washer, then the mess is even bigger.

Below are the seven best remedies for this sticker situation and will have your clothes back to normal in no time!

Before starting any of these remedies listed below, make sure you test your clothing on an inside hem to make sure that the product you are using won't discolor your clothing.

Note: If you are trying to get sticker residue off of a delicate piece of clothing, then don't try any of the suggestions below. Head straight to the dry cleaners!

1. Nail Polish Remover

Nail polish remover is a great way to remove sticky things!

Whether that is gum or sticker residue, this solution is effective.

Step 1 – Pick off what you can of the sticker residue and then blot the area with nail polish remover.

Step 2 – Scrape the area again to remove any residue.

Step 3 – If there is any left, then use a clean microfiber cloth to wet the area and rub in a little bit of dish soap.

Step 4 – Soak the clothing in warm water for at least 20 minutes and then lay it out to dry.

Step 5 – Check to see if the residue is gone and if it isn't, then repeat these steps a second time.

2. Vinegar

Vinegar is a great cleaning agent that you should always have on hand.

It comes in handy with cleaning practically everything in your home!

When it comes to sticker residue, vinegar will help loosen that sticky mess so you can clean it off your clothing.

Step 1 – Warm up a small bowl of white vinegar in the microwave. Only warm it for about 20 seconds.

Step 2 – Use a clean cloth and blot the area with the warm vinegar.

Step 3 – Let the vinegar soak the area and sit for several minutes.

Step 4 – Use a butter knife or spatula to scrape off the sticker residue.

Step 5 – Once the sticker residue is completely scraped off, then pour a small amount of laundry detergent over the area and rub it in.

Step 6 – After the laundry detergent has had a few minutes to soak into the clothing, then wash it as you normally would. Once it is done washing, check the area to make sure the sticker residue is completely gone and lay it out to air dry.

3. Goo Gone

If you have Goo Gone on hand, then this would be a great option for getting that stubborn sticker residue off your clothes.

Goo Gone is typically thought to be used on hard surfaces, but can also be used on fabrics.

Step 1 – Spray Goo Gone on the sticker residue and let it sit for a couple of minutes.

Step 2 – Blot the area with a clean cloth and start to scrap the residue off.

Step 3 – Once the sticker residue is completely gone, then wash as you normally would.

4. Dish Soap

Dish soap cuts into grease and sticker residue!

When it comes to sticky things, dish soap is up to the task of cleaning up this mess.

Step 1 – Rub dish soap over the sticker area and let it sit for about 15 minutes.

Step 2 – Use a butter knife to scrape the area and gently pull that sticky residue up.

Step 3 – Rinse the clothing and make sure all of the sticker residue is completely gone. If not, add more dish soap to the area and scrape it again.

Step 4 – Wash as you normally would and lay out your clothes to air dry.

5. Lemon Essential Oils

Essential oils have lots of purposes, but lemon in particular is great for loosening sticky residues.

A little goes a long way, so you don't have to have much on hand to use this solution for your clothing.

Step 1 – Drop a few drops of lemon oil on the sticker residue and let it sit for several minutes.

Step 2 – Scrape the area with your fingernails or a butter knife.

Step 3 – Once the sticker residue is completely off, then wash your clothes as you normally would.

Step 4 – When your clothes are done washing, check the area again to make sure there is no sign of stickiness and then lay out your clothing to air dry.

6. WD-40

You may think that WD-40 is only something you would use on a squeaky hing.

Surprise! You can use this to get a sticker off of your clothing too.

Step 1 – Spray the area with WD-40 and let it sit for several minutes.

Step 2 – Scrape off all of the sticker residue with a butter knife or spatula.

Step 3 – Rinse the area with dish soap and warm water.

Step 4 – Wash as you normally would in your washer. Once it is done, pull it out right away and check to make sure that all of the sticker residue is completely gone. Lay out your clothing to air dry.

7. Rubbing Alcohol

Rubbing alcohol is pretty effective at getting sticky things off of anything.

Step 1 – Blot the area with rubbing alcohol. Use plenty so that it can start to work on loosening the stickiness of the sticker.

Step 2 – Let the rubbing alcohol sit on the clothing for a few minutes and then use a blunt object, such as a spoon or butter knife, to scrape off the sticky residue.

Step 3 – Wash as you normally would, but let it air dry after getting your clothes out of the washer. Check to make sure the sticker residue is completely gone. If not, then repeat steps one through three again.