We hope your holiday season is filled with delicious food, great conversation, and meaningful company. The best holidays are centered around food, and we all enjoy sharing meals with friends and family. When a guest spills their red wine on the carpet or a family member drips gravy on the furniture, the mood can quickly change from festive to fearful. Don’t let a few drops of wine ruin the celebration. Learn how to remove red wine and other holiday carpet stains with these quick tips from your friends at Exclusive Cleaning and Restoration. If you can’t remove holiday stains, give us a call and our professionals will take care of everything.

Removing Red Wine from Carpet with Baking Soda

When it comes to red wine on the carpet, the key is to act fast.

  1. Use a dry, white cloth to blot the area, removing as much of the moisture as possible.
  2. Once you’ve removed as much of the wine as possible from the carpet fibers, pour a small amount of cold water directly onto the stain.
  3. Continue blotting with the white cloth. The idea is to dilute the stain with the cold water.
  4. Once you’ve removed as much of the wine stain as possible with cold water and a blotting cloth, prepare a baking soda cleaning paste. Mix a 3:1 ratio of baking soda to water and apply it to the wine stain. Wait for the baking soda paste to dry and vacuum the wine stain.

Remove Gravy Stains from Carpet and Upholstery

“Please pass the gravy!” is one of the most common phrases you’ll hear around the Thanksgiving dinner table – and also one of the most common holiday carpet stains. It’s delicious, it’s thick, and it definitely leaves an unsightly stain on your carpet and upholstery.

  1. Remove as much of the solid from the carpet or couch fibers as possible using a clean spoon or knife. Gravy is oily, so avoid using a cloth because it could push the oil deeper into the fibers.
  2. Sprinkle the stain with baking soda to absorb the excess oil. Use a soft brush to gently work the baking soda into the carpet. Let the powder sit on the stain for at least 30 minutes before vacuuming up.
  3. If the stain hasn’t lifted, mix a few drops of dish soap with 2 cups of hot water and gently clean with a soft brush. Use a paper towel or cloth to blot away the cleaner. Continue until the stain is removed.
  4. If the gravy stain is on silk, vintage fabric or specialty upholstery, sprinkle with baking soda and call a professional cleaner as soon as possible.

Removing Candle Wax Stains

Candle wax is one of the easier stains to remove, as long as you wait for it to dry!

  1. Blow out the candle and wait for the dripped wax to dry.
  2. Gently scrape off as much hardened wax as possible using a dull knife and vacuum what remains.
  3. Lay a damp paper towel or white cotton towel over the remaining wax and press down with a warm iron to transfer the wax to the towel. Repeat until all or most of the wax is gone.

Cranberry Sauce Carpet Stains

Whether you prefer homemade or canned, a holiday meal just isn’t complete without cranberry sauce. Handle a cranberry sauce stain with these quick tips.

  1. Scrape up any excess cranberry sauce with a spoon.
  2. Blot with a white cloth and cold water, removing as much of the red stain as possible. Be careful not to spread the stain.
  3. Prepare a solution with a few drops of mild dish soap and 2 cups of hot water. Use a clean white cloth to blot the cleaning solution onto the stain.
  4. Dry with another cloth and repeat until the stain is lifted.