5 Laundry Tips For Washing Stained Baby Clothes

If you're a parent, then you know that blowouts, burps and food stains are inevitable. Then, when your baby starts crawling or walking, rips and tears in their clothes become almost daily common occurrences as well. As a baby clothing rental service, we know these mishaps are bound to happen. And it doesn’t surprise us why one of the most frequently asked questions we get is, "how should I handle this stain or tear?"

To help parents like you navigate the mess and craziness that comes along with our beloved little ones, we’ve put together a list of our top 5 laundry tips for washing stained baby clothes. These tips will not only help extend the life of your Romp + Tumble clothes, but they are also easy on your wallet and good for the planet.

Here are 5 Laundry Tips to Wash Stained Baby Clothes

Whether you’re a member of the Romp + Tumble Community or a parent searching for ways to take care of your baby’s clothes, here are our 5 top tips to help you handle stains and tears.

1. Pre-treat stains as soon as you can.

One of the best ways to handle stains is to pre-treat them as soon as you can. Generally, this involves using your detergent and rubbing the stain. For those really tough ones, we also recommend pre-treating stained areas with basic kitchen items such as lemon and white vinegar. For a more exact measurement, you can squeeze ½ a lemon into a small bowl and mix with a teaspoon of white vinegar. Once you’ve mixed these, you can then soak the stain for about 10 minutes. In addition, use the lemon that you took the juice from and rub the stain to really saturate it. Let the stain sit for a couple more minutes to make sure the mixture has truly absorbed into the stain. If you think the stain needs additional pretreating, you can use detergent and rub again. Once you’ve let it sit for a decent amount of time, throw the garment in the wash and the stain should be gone when the cycle is done. This solution should take care of the mess – saving you money on a special stain remover and protecting the planet by limiting the use of more chemicals.

2. Wash stained clothing in cold water and inside out. 

In order to help preserve the coloring of the garment and quality of the material, we suggest washing it with cold water and turning it inside out. Washing this item on the cold settings helps you save energy which in turn will save you money. If you have the time to separate and wash the garment with like colors, then you’ll save even more by making the most out of your wash. 

3. Wash your baby’s clothing with yours.

While your baby’s clothes may be dirtier than yours, you can still launder them with your own clothing as long as they can be on the same temperature setting. This will not only save you time and effort, but it will also help save water and energy. 

4. Use the low setting on your dryer.

Using the low setting on your dryer is the best option to care for your baby’s clothing because this not only helps save energy but also prevents their clothing from shrinking. Babies grow about seven sizes in less than two years, so the longer you can make their clothes fit the better. In an ideal world, the best option would be to air dry your items, but that would take forever with how many clothes they go through in a week. Since most daily routines don’t have time for that, the second best alternative is to set your dryer on the “low” or “air dry” setting. 

5. Air out clothes that aren’t dirty. 

You might be surprised to hear this, but most of us wash our clothes way too often. Just because your baby or toddler wore something for 5 minutes doesn’t mean it needs to be washed every time. If their clothes don’t look or smell dirty, then there’s no need to wash them. Often, airing out clothes overnight on a hanger refreshes them, and then they can be worn another time.

How does Romp + Tumble handle stains and tears for their bundles?

If you’re a member of the Romp + Tumble community or considering trying out our subscription service for sustainable, premium baby clothing, then you’re probably wondering how we handle the items in our bundles. 

First and foremost, every single bundle we send out is washed, sanitized and steamed/dried. We check each item in our collection for holes and stains, so you’ll never receive a garment that does not meet our high standards of cleanliness and quality. When an item no longer meets these standards of sharing and needs to be retired, we donate, upcycle or recycle.

What happens if a member stains or tears a Romp + Tumble garment?

While our members receive items in great condition, you may be wondering what happens if you return an item in your bundle with stains or tears. As parents ourselves, we get it and understand toddlers and babies are messy! This is why those incidents are taken care of as part of your subscription, so you will not get penalized for minor stains or holes. If an item is stained or torn, we simply ask that you return it, so we can do our best to repair the item and continue on our mission to reshare as much as possible. 

Try A Romp + Tumble Bundle for $35

Caring for a baby or toddler is very rewarding, but it also takes a lot of time and can be stressful. To help you maximize your time, dress your little one and do your part for the planet, try renting a Romp + Tumble bundle.

Romp + Tumble curates and rents bundles of baby clothes for every growth spurt – from 0-3T. With our bundles of premium eco-friendly clothing, you can worry less about laundry, stains and tears, and instead exchange for free when you're ready for something new. Select your bundle size and fill out your design questionnaire to try out a bundle starting at just $35/month.