Crayon stains are the bane of many parents and teachers around the world. More than once a crayon has found its’ way into the dryer, staining not only the original garment but often the entire dryer load. The clothing is salvageable, even with some old, set in stains.

Thanks to the invention of the sponge-like erasers on the market today, removal of crayon stains from surfaces other than fabric is easier than ever. At one time, it took a lot of elbow grease to get crayon off of walls and other areas. To remove crayon from painted walls, just use one of these ‘magic’ erasers with light pressure. With a soft touch, you may also use them on leather furniture to remove crayon stains.

If you do not have one of the eraser tools on hand, you can use a normal pink rubber eraser to remove crayon from some walls. This works much better than a washcloth or regular sponge.

There are many suggested methods of removing crayon from clothing and other fabric items. Before following any of the instructions or recipes, check your fabric label. Some items cannot be soaked with any liquid, others need a certain tempature to avoid damaging the fabric.


Methods:
1. Clothing with fresh crayon marks can be treated with a solution of one cup Ivory Snow detergent and one cup of baking soda in the warmest wash possible. Repeat until the stains are gone.

2. WD40- The Crayola site has a .pdf available with suggestions on how to remove stains from many of their products. WD40 is a lubricating spray available in most grocery, hardware, and discount stores in the U.S., other countries more than likely have similar sprays that will work in the same manner. Visit : The PDF page for more details.

3. Tough stains: Mix one cup dishwashing liquid (some swear by blue colored Dawn), one cup oxy cleaner, one cup color safe bleach, and one cup powder laundry detergent. Dishwashing liquid is known to remove grease, may help remove crayon as well.


Set in stains: This is for clothing that has been through the dryer with a crayon and the stains are set by the dryer. Many people swear by this recipe, though I suggest using it only if other methods have failed and you are going to throw out the item. For this formula, use the hottest water possible and dissolve one cup each dishwashing detergent (powder for dishwashers) and colorsafe bleach. Soak the item in the solution up to over night, then launder as usual.

If possible, try to catch stains before drying. All of the above methods can be used on clothing that have had a run in with crayons in the dryer, though.