We were barely at the October school holidays and already my son’s white shirts had started to look not so bright …. in fact some of them look kind of dirty. It must be a new record but we had officially reached that time of year where they seem more grey looking than white… and the lack of sunshine is not helping!
One of the main culprits of this #delightful off white tone is those flipping black markers that they use at school. I am sure those things are actually made of some kind of tar like colouring. It is a nightmare to wash out. My mum likened it to trying to get rid of a creosote stain. They also seem to have nibs that are magnetically attracted to white tops
I have tried hot washes before but decided to bring in the big guns to brighten up these whites in a more eco way! By big guns, I mean the Good Housekeeping Institute Approved Ecover Bio Laundry Liquid and Ecover Stain Remover.
Ecover is a brand I have at home all the time, but I will be honest and say I did not get how a natural and eco-friendly brand could have a bio product…. this did not compute to me. Bio to me conjures up images of harsh biological washing liquids or bleach activated products that have traditionally aggravated my skin, let alone what they do for the environment.
This Ecover Bio Laundry Liquid is biodegradable, uses plant based ingredients, is suitable for sensitive skin and fabulously is housed in a bottle made from recycled and plant plastic! I used this liquid to tackle my son’s shirts first. Wow, no pre-soak, fabric felt as soft as normal after washing and most importantly the whites looked like whites!!!! Thank goodness!
I thought there would be a catch and maybe it would make my son’s skin itchy, but no this laundry liquid is kind to skin as well as tough on whites. One shirt came out needing a little more love. Yep….. it involves the black pen of course… but this particular shirt had a larger piece of “artwork” drawn on the back back by one of his mates. It turns out they weren’t meaning to draw on his shirt but they were fencing and the pen was the weapon! Silly me! I hate this pen. Can you tell?
I decided to put my Ecover Stain Remover to the test on this one. This award winning and effective product is made out of plant based ingredients, is septic tank friendly and fully biodegradable. It has a handy brush for application onto the clothes and can be used on stubborn stains like grass, mud, shirt collars, blood and also annoying black pen marks!!
I found it really easy to apply this stain remover straight onto the problem areas of my son’s shirt. I also used it on his red school sweathirt which had some grass stains on the front …. think victory slide along the grass and you will get what I am talking about. It worked a treat on the stains. No more black pen or grass, clothes are stain free and vibrant! None of the fabric was ruined and there was not a nasty chemical smell lingering about. Big thumbs up!
Have you tried this Bio Laundry Gel or Stain Remover? How did it stand up to the traditional toxic filled ones?
