Red wine: easy to drink, even easier to spill. Ask anyone and they'll have a solution for removing red wine, whether it involves using white wine or other unlikely substances like milk or shaving cream. It's a dreaded thing to spill, but we're here to calm your fears. We called in an expert, Ingrid Johnson, Professor and Assistant Chairperson of Textile Development and Marketing at Fashion Institute Of Technology (FIT), to debunk some cleaning myths and give us the right solutions. 1. Salt is the best option for cleaning up freshly-spilled red wine. "The first and easiest thing to do is ​to ​sprinkle with salt as this will absorb the wine," Johnson told us via email. The solution holds true for bedspreads, curtains, couches and other home items, which all "absorb slowly," making it easier to get the wet stain out. If the item is made of cotton, hot water is enough to do the trick, according to Johnson. 2. Oxi products are the best thing for getting out old, dried stains.

"Old or set in stains from wine can be more of a challenge," says Johnson. But it is possible to get dried wine stains out. She recommends saturating the area with hot water, applying a pre-treatment and then letting any oxi product -- usually a combination of granules and water -- "work its magic" for anywhere from 2 to 10 hours. 3. You shouldn't use white wine to clean up spills. Johnson shoots this home remedy myth down. "In both cases the stain is essentially fruit juice and not matter how clear the white wine seems​,​ it has color from the fruit," she adds. 4. Preventing stains is difficult, period. We've heard rumors that using certain fabrics like Sunbrella inside the home or awesome fabric protectors are easy ways to prevent stains, which Johnson partly puts them to rest. "There are fabric protectors like Scotchgard, but they are surface applications and can wear off from use. Sunbrella essentially can withstand being exposed to the elements and is noted for outstanding weather-ability."

At least if spills can't truly be prevented, we've got some solutions for you. And as Johnson said, where there is oxi paste, "there is always hope." Professor Johnson's answers were condensed for space and clarity.Sponge the spot with cool water or soak for about 30 minutes in a basin of cool water.2. Pretreat with a prewash stain remover.3. If it's safe for the fabric, add chlorine bleach to the wash.Blot up as much of the spilled wine as possible.2. best red wine for gift givingMix one tablespoon of liquid hand dishwashing detergent with two cups of cool water.3. buy harry potter wine glassUsing a clean white cloth, sponge the stain with the detergent solution.4. wine gift sets for christmas

Blot until the liquid is absorbed.5. Repeat Steps 3 and 4 until the stain disappears.6. Sponge with cold water and blot dry.Using a clean white cloth, sponge the stain with a dry-cleaning solvent.2. Blot until the solvent is absorbed.3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 until the stain disappears.Use plain water or mix one tablespoon of liquid hand dishwashing detergent and one tablespoon of white vinegar with two cups of warm water. 3. Using a clean white cloth, sponge the stain with plain water or the detergent/vinegar solution. best tasting cheap sweet wineApply a little bit at a time, blotting frequently with a dry cloth until the stain disappears.4. best french wine 2013If using a detergent/vinegar solution, sponge with cold water and blot dry.buy wine online in germany

Worth a TryIf all else fails to remove the red wine stain (especially on a white carpet), mix one part hand dishwashing detergent with two parts hydrogen peroxide. Be sure to test first in an inconspicuous spot to make sure the solution doesn't harm the color of the carpet. Salad Dressing, Creamy or VinaigretteI'm a white wine drinker usually, but last week I had friends over who love red wine, and we all dove in. Sure enough, within the first hour I had red wine spattered on my dress-shirt from a cork that popped in the wrong way. Not so long ago a friend spilled red wine on my new white linen chair in the living room. It looked awful, but with a little smart work, all was okay. Due to this, I've gotten pretty good at getting these stains out and have some info here to help you. Enjoy and please add your own remarks. (Image credit: Maxwell Ryan) Red wine will stain fibers that it sinks into for too long and they become permanent if heated in a dryer as they will then "set."

The goal then is to "lift" the red wine off of the fibers by diluting it and wicking it away. Scrubbing is therefore a no-no. It is good to treat a stain right away: 1. Dab stain with paper towels to absorb as much wine as possible 2. Do not rub it! 3. Apply liquid solution to begin working on what remains (see below for choices) Getting moisture into the area is the quickest way to break it up and keep it from settling. Depending on whether you're dealing with a sofa, rug, shirt or tablecloth, you will be limited in which options you can use, but there are many approaches here and one will certainly do the job. The oldest and simplest solutions are these first two: I have found this to be a great quick solution, but not totally effective on all stains. It can't hurt however, and often is the best solution to reduce the stain overnight so that it can be treated more fully if needed in the morning. The salt solution has been improved, in my experience, by pouring club soda on top of the stain first.

Sometimes the soda alone is enough. Sometimes both soda and salt are enough. Sometimes you need to go further... 3. Dishwashing Liquid & Hydrogen Peroxide Mixing HP and liquid dish soap (many swear by Dawn) is perhaps the most popular and trusted DIY solution I found. While the proportions vary from 1 to 1 to 3 to 1 (above), this seems to combine the lifting effect and an agent that effectively breaks up the red color in the wine. Many of the product stain removers build on this. 4. Bicarb Soda & Vinegar 5. Hot Water Through The Fabric This last hot water solution was the most surprising to me, but makes total sense and is really nice for tablecloths, clothing and anything sturdy that you can put over a bowl. Tablecloths are usually the ones that get stained the most, so this would be my first go to next time. I have only used Wine Away from the following list and found it worked 80% of the time, but it was a good start. For really deep stains you will need to throw something harder at it and the OxiClean solution would be my first choice based on the number of rave reviews it received from readers.