How To Remove an Oil Stain from Velvet

Oil-based skin care products, such as Sudocrem, work well for repelling moisture on the skin, but can leave an oil stain on fabrics. Luckily, oil stain removal is fairly easy, even for a finicky fabric like velvet. If there is a large glob of the material sitting on the fabric, first scoop up as much as possible with a spoon. Once the bulk is removed, follow the steps below.

You Will Need:

• An absorbent powder:
  • Baking soda
  • Corn meal
  • Wheat germ
  • Salt
• A brush or vacuum

Steps to Remove the Stain:

1. Select an absorbent powder from the list above. It can help to choose a powder that most closely matches the color of your fabric so that if any residue from the powder remains in the fabric for some reason, it will not be visible. However, any absorbent powder will work to remove the oil stain.
2. Pour a generous amount of the powder over the stain. You want the powder to be a thick pile, about a centimeter deep if possible.
3. Let the powder sit on the stain for an hour or two.
4. Brush off the powder with a bristle brush or use a vacuum hose to suction it up.
5. Repeat the process as many times as needed for the stain to be removed. If needed, you can let the powder sit on the stain for longer, such as overnight.

If the stain is on the backrest or arm of a chair, you can either tilt the chair onto it’s side or back so that the surface becomes flat and the above method can be used, or use the method below.

You Will Need:

• Plastic wrap
• Scotch tape
• An absorbent powder:
  • Baking soda
  • Corn meal
  • Wheat germ
  • Salt
• A brush or vacuum

Steps to Remove the Powder:

1. Select an absorbent powder from the list above. It can help to choose a powder that most closely matches the color of your fabric so that if any residue from the powder remains in the fabric for some reason, it will not be visible. However, any absorbent powder will work to remove the oil stain.
2. Cut a piece of plastic wrap to fit over the stain.
3. Tape the bottom edge of the plastic wrap in place. Use Scotch tape or another weak tape like paper tape only. Do not use a strong tape or you could damage the velvet.
4. Let go of the top part of the plastic wrap so that it dangles freely.
5. Put pieces of tape along the side edges of the plastic wrap so that you can just smooth the plastic wrap upwards with your hand and the sides will be taped in place.
6. Put one hand under the dangling plastic wrap and with your other hand, start sprinkling the powder onto the plastic wrap. Be careful not to sprinkle any powder over the edges of the plastic wrap where the tape is or the tape will not stick.
7. Move your hand upwards slowly to hold in the pile of powder as you pour it. When you’ve finished, you should have a thick pouch of powder taped against the velvet.
8. Tape the top edge of the plastic wrap in place to help hold the weight of the powder.
9. Let the powder sit on the velvet for a couple hours or overnight.
10. Put a dustpan underneath the area and remove the plastic wrap. The powder should hopefully fall into the dust pan.
11. Brush off or vacuum up any powder that remains.
12. Repeat the process as many times as needed to remove the stain.

• If the stain is old, it may need to be freshened in order for the above method to work. If that is the case, put a small amount of liquid vegetable glycerin on a cloth and blot it onto the stain. You only need a small amount. Glycerin is available in the baking aisle of supermarkets or at a pharmacy. Let the glycerin sit on the stain for 30-60 minutes, then use one of the methods above. A drop or two of cooking oil can be used in place of glycerin.
• If the stain is stubborn, try using a home dry cleaning kit. These are available in the laundry aisle of your local supermarket. If the kit requires that the item be put in the dryer, that is because heat is needed to activated the dry cleaning solvent. For upholstery, a hair dryer can be used instead.

• The Super Stain Remover Book by Jack Cassimatis
• Clean It Fast, Clean It Right by Jeff Bredenberg