Removing common stains from lawn and cotton (safely)

Food stains: turmeric, oil and tea

Food is the most common culprit at family meals and dawats, and curry combines two problems: colour from turmeric and grease from oil.

• Turmeric (haldi) and curry: scrape off any residue, rinse from the back with cold water, then work in a little washing-up liquid to lift the oil before washing as normal. Turmeric is stubborn and may take more than one attempt. On plain white cotton only, drying in daylight often fades what remains; do not try this on printed or coloured fabric, which can fade too.
• Oil and ghee: blot, then cover the mark with cornflour or talc for a while to absorb the oil, brush it off, and work in washing-up liquid before washing.
• Tea and coffee: rinse from the back in cold water as soon as you can, then wash with your usual detergent. Milky tea adds a protein element, so avoid hot water at first.

Makeup, henna and other everyday marks

• Foundation and lipstick: blot rather than smear. A little washing-up liquid, or a makeup remover tested on a hidden area first, often lifts oily makeup before washing.
• Mehndi (henna): let fresh paste dry and scrape it off rather than wetting it, then rinse from the back in cold water and wash. Henna dye can be permanent on cotton, so act fast and be realistic.
• Deodorant marks: fresh white marks often brush off or come out in the wash. Yellowed underarms are harder, and repeated gentle treatment usually works better than one harsh one.
• Blood: always cold water, never hot, then wash as normal.
• Ink: stubborn on cotton. For a suit you care about, a dry cleaner is the safest route.

When not to treat a stain at home

Some stains and fabrics are better left to a professional. Take the piece to a dry cleaner, and tell them what the stain is and how long it has been there, if it is on silk, cotton silk, raw silk, velvet or embellished chiffon; on zari, gota, sequins, stones or heavy embroidery; on anything labelled dry clean only; or if it is a large or old stain on a suit that matters to you. Home treatment on these can spread the mark, lift colour or damage the embellishment, making a professional clean harder.

For everyday washing, see our care guide, and for habits that keep suits looking good between washes, our guide to making your suits last longer. Before a new suit is stitched, our colour-fastness test tells you how its dyes are likely to behave in water.

If a stain will not shift

Sometimes a mark is permanent, especially on pale lawn. That does not always mean the outfit is finished. A stained front can sometimes be covered with a new yoke or panel, a marked sleeve can be shortened or replaced, and a long kameez can become a shorter kurta if the stain is near the hem. Whether any of this works depends on the fabric you have left.

For work like this, take the garment to a tailor who can see the stain and the whole piece and tell you what is realistic. Our restyling guide has more ideas for giving a marked suit a second life. If it cannot be saved, or you would rather have something new, we can make a new outfit to your measurements: see custom stitching or start a quote.