Since I'm always looking for ingredients and trying diferent recipes, I recently received a book called Vinegar: 1001 Practical Uses, that I literally went through in one sitting. Not only did I discover how many different types of vinegars there are–some I had never even heard of like champagne vinegar, coconut vinegar, and malt vinegar, for example), but I also found out how many different uses versatile vinegar has beyond putting it in my favorite vinaigrette. There are so many that below, I'll share some great uses of white vinegar for cleaning laundry and around the house. I'm sure that, like me, you'll find them super useful.
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To remove stuck-on labels or stickers: You know those labels they put in the worst possible place on everything from a picture frame to a kitchen dish? Well, all you have to do is thoroughly wet the label in vinegar, let it soak through, and remove.
To remove sweat stains: For those stains that T-shirts and dresses develop, wet the affected area with vinegar and then wash your pieces as you normally would.
To remove deodorant stains: To get rid of those annoying yellow stains on clothes, soak the affected items, let them really absorb the vinegar, and then wash as usual.
To remove stubborn stains from sleeves and collars: Make a paste with vinegar and bicarbonate of sodium (baking soda), apply that to the nasty dirty areas before washing, then launder as usual.
As a perfect substitute for fabric softener: Add vinegar during the rinse cycle of your wash. It does the job and is much gentler than perfume-laden softeners.
To remove grass, coffee, tea, and fruit stains: Soak the affected items in pure vinegar before washing.
To prevent fabrics from fading: When you suspect that one of your clothing items is starting to fade from washing, start preventing any further discoloration by adding a little bit of vinegar to your washer. Add 5 oz. of vinegar to the wash when you're washing sheets, towels, and blankets to keep their color lively longer.
To eliminate the smell of bleach from your clothes: Add 1 1/4 cups of vinegar to the last rinse when you've washed your clothes with bleach to have them coming out without that strong smell.
To remove grease from suede: Dip an old tooth brush in pure vinegar and brush the grease-stained suede until the stain disappears.
To eliminate cigarette smell from clothes: Fill your bathtub with very hot water and add 1 1/4 cups of vinegar. Hang the affected smelly clothes in the bathroom and let the water and vinegar's vapors do their thing. Open the window and let clothes get refreshed overnight, if possible.
Image via Enriqueta Lemoine
