If you remember anything from this guide, let it be this: When it comes to removing stains, time is of the essence. It can be tempting to toss a stained garment into your hamper, forget about it, and hope for the best on laundry day—but the sooner you take action, the better chance you have of salvaging your piece. If you stain your clothing and don’t have time to spot treat it right away, lay the piece on your bed (or somewhere else you won’t be able to miss it) so you remember to do it before you go to sleep that night.

Red Wine Stains

“You should bring anything stained with red wine to the dry cleaners, because they can get it out easily,” says Dae. While some red wine stains can be removed using at-home methods (and there are many, as a quick Google search will show), DIY techniques don’t always work. If you’re unsuccessful in removing red wine yourself, you could permanently stain your garment. 

As we discussed, timing is everything—and Dae suggests bringing wine-stained garments to the dry cleaners within five days. “The longer you hold it at home, the harder it will be to take it out,” he explains. And if it’s a delicate item (think: silk or cashmere), the long, harsh process required to remove a stain that’s been sitting for a while could end up damaging the piece.

Coffee Stains

Annie and Dae agree that in most cases, coffee stains can be handled at home. “Let’s say you’re like me, and you spill coffee on yourself on your morning commute, which I’ve done many times,” says Annie. “I always follow my dad’s advice: When I get to the office, I gently blot the area with a dry cloth to remove excess coffee. When I get home that evening, I immediately soak the stain with a little bit of water and an equal-parts solution of dish soap and white vinegar for about 15 minutes (for small stains, use a q-tip). Finally, I rinse the area with cold or lukewarm water. This, in my experience, gets the coffee out right away, but if you wait too long and let it sit in your hamper, there’s a big chance this method won’t work. At that point, it’s time to bring your garment to the dry cleaners (or in my case, have my dad add it to my tab).” 

Dae adds that Dawn dish soap works best for stain removal, but cautions against using too much of it. “The goal,” he says, “is not to have so much soap that it leaves suds on the garment.”

Tomato Sauce Stains

If you get tomato sauce on your clothes, follow the same steps you’d use to remove a coffee stain (outlined above)—and fast. “Tomato sauce is definitely something you don’t want to settle into your clothes,” says Dae. If the dish-soap-and-white-vinegar technique doesn’t do the trick, head to the dry cleaner (but even a dry cleaner won’t be able to help if you wait too long to address the stain). 

Oil-Based Stains

The dish-soap-and-white-vinegar technique outlined above also works well for light-colored oils and salad dressings. For more heavy-duty stains (think: thick sauces, steak drippings), your best bet is to head to the dry cleaner as soon as you can.

Plant-Based Stains

According to Dae, plant-based stains, such as berries or grass stains, respond especially well to stain removers (The Laundress Stain Solution and Wash & Stain Bar are M.M.’s favorites). Apply the stain remover as soon as possible, then wash your garment as usual according to the care instructions.

If you know what created a stain, make a note of it so you can tell your dry cleaner. “This will save a lot of time for the dry cleaner and also give you the best chance of getting back a perfectly intact, stain-free garment,” says Dae. Unfortunately, it’s not always obvious where a stain came from. “Most of the mysterious small stains I get are actually blood stains,” says Dae. “People often get small cuts and never even realize it. If you notice a small stain and you can’t remove it with water or the dish soap method, try ammonia. If it comes out, it was a blood stain.”

Small stains can be easy to miss at first—especially if you’re eager to get undressed and in bed after a large Thanksgiving dinner. If you haven’t inspected your garment for stains before putting it in the laundry, Annie recommends washing with cold water and being very selective about what you put in the dryer (in fact, we don’t recommend putting any M.M.LaFleur pieces in the dryer). “Once heat is applied to the garment,” she explains, “the stain is pretty much set, and there’s only a 50/50 chance your dry cleaner will be able to get it out.”