How to Remove Ink Stain from Clothing

Pen ink stain can be a hassle. It renders your clothing useless. It is embarrassing. It's a pain to get out. Yes, that's it's all true. But there's really no need to panic. There's a fast, easy and painless way to remove ink stain.

Here's a step-by-step guide on how to properly remove ink stain without damaging your clothing.

Step 1: As soon as you notice the stain, try your best to blot it out. Note: Always blot the spot, never rub it. A clean wet sponge or other absorbent material (cotton, tissue) are best used for this. Make sure you get all the ink sitting on the fabric surface (just keep blotting until no ink can be lifted). If this is a water-based ink stain (ie from a fountain pen), chances are it would be half gone by now. If this is the case, just run the spot through the faucet until the ink disappears. If it's still very visible after some amount of dabbing, then you're dealing with oil-based ink. If so, proceed to the next step.

Step 2: Allow the area you just dabbed to dry. Be patient. Don't use a hair dryer, this will just make the situation worse as it sets the ink into the fabric.

Step 3: Get a dry sheet of paper towel and place it directly under the stain.

Step 4: Spray the stain with hair spray.

Step 5: Immediately top with another sheet of dry paper towel and press hard against it.

Step 6: This should easily lift the stain out. Repeat until most of the ink stain is removed. If trace amounts of ink stain still remain, pre-treatment and a single run through the washer should clear that right up.

This is the easiest way to remove ink stain from clothing. If you're running low on hair spray, denatured alcohol can do the trick. Get a few drops onto a cotton swab and apply it directly to the ink stain. Use the same paper towel-sandwich trick to get the ink right out of the fabric. Denatured alcohol even works on removing tough ink stains like felt-tip marker ink.

Remember though that not all fabrics can take alcohol. Leather, silk, rayon and other dry-clean-only fabrics are best left in the hands of professionals. If the article of clothing doesn't carry specific washing instructions and you're not 100% sure about the alcohol issue, try it on an inconspicuous area first.