How Can I Clean a Lipstick Stain?

While discovering a lipstick stain on a piece of clothing or other surface may be annoying, it need not mean that the item in question is ruined. With just a few tools, many of which you likely already have in your home, it may be possible to banish even the most conspicuous lipstick stain. Removing lipstick from a machine-washable item may be a simple matter of applying a stain remover. You may be able to eliminate lipstick stains from items and surfaces which cannot be washed in a machine using one or more household cleaning products, or in the case of stubborn smudges, a dry-cleaning solution.

Often, a piece of machine-washable clothing or fabric which has been marred by a lipstick stain can be restored using just a bit more effort than that required for your everyday laundering procedure. First of all, use an object with a thin, straight edge, such as the top of a butter knife, to scrape away any lipstick that has not been ground into the fabric. Then, treat the back side of the stained area with a stain remover, allowing the product to set for the time indicated on packaging instructions. Next, simply launder the garment or item as normal. If the stain persists, try repeating the process, adding color-safe bleach to the washing machine unless the fabric’s label indicates that it is not non-chlorine bleach safe.

Removing a lipstick stain from an item or surface that is not machine-washable generally requires a bit more work than treating washable items. To treat surfaces such as carpeting or upholstery, begin by using a flat edge to scrape away excess lipstick. Then, combine two tablespoons of household dish washing liquid with one to two cups of warm water. Dip a cotton swab or a sponge in this solution, and then blot the stained surface, using a new swab or a fresh area of the sponge frequently so the lipstick is not ground into the fabric further. When the stain has been removed, blot the affected area with cold water using a clean sponge or swab.

Even if a lipstick stain persists after it has been treated with dish washing liquid, you may still be able to salvage your non-machine-washable item or surface. Some stain-removal experts recommend treating very stubborn lipstick smudges with dry-cleaning solvent, which can be blotted directly onto the stain using a sponge. It should be noted, however, that dry-cleaning solvent can be difficult to find in stores. Further, it tends to have a strong chemical smell, and should therefore be used only in well-ventilated areas.