The other day I went to a Home Depot store to purchase a
brand new sofa. I was so excited about beautifying my home with new furniture,
but I was in for a huge surprise.
After making the purchase, the sofa arrived a day later. It
came wrapped in plastic, but I decided to remove it since I wanted everything
to look normal.
My nephew, Jason came to visit for the weekend because his
mom was out for of town. He was only seven years old, but I had no problem
letting in sit on the sofa.
One morning, I strolled out of bed just to see Jason trying
to remove a stain that he accidentally made while drinking fruit punch. He spread
the stain all over the sofa! I forcefully held back the tears, but after I a
few hours I managed to remove the stain.
Below, you’ll see how I managed to get my upholstery back to
normal with a few easy steps. Read on!
Easy Steps for Cleaning Upholstery
Gaining basic knowledge of how to properly clean your
upholstery (by yourself) can help to keep your home looking and smelling fresh
without having to reach into your pockets whenever upholstery cleaning is
required.
After Jason spilled his juice on my brand new sofa, I
decided to give it a proper cleaning.
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Firstly, I tested to see if the colors of the
upholstery material can be faded out before actually cleaning it. If you’re
attempting to clean yours, you can use any suitable cleaning solution as the
testing agent. Use it on a small section of the upholstery that is hidden from
view.
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If you don’t wish to use store-bought cleaners,
you could make your own water-based, non-corrosive, and eco-friendly upholstery
cleaner.
I made my own upholstery cleaner by:
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Combining ¼ cup of dish washing liquid and a cup
of warm water in a container.
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Afterward, I used an electric mixer to beat it
until the liquid became really foamy.
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I then took off the cushions of the sofa.
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Used a vacuum attachment to properly vacuum the
surfaces. Vacuuming aids in the removal of dirt that may be present. If the
water mixes with the dirt, the result would be very displeasing!
°
Next, I used a soft brush to force the soap
mixture onto the material.
°
Using a spatula, I managed to get rid of the
foam.
°
There were leftover suds, so I used a damped
cloth to wipe them away.
°
Don’t use a lot of water, though. This may
result in the shrinkage of the fibers.
°
Allow your upholstery to dry. The time will vary
based on the type of fabric.
Verdict
After the incident with Jason, I thought that I had lost my
dearly loved sofa forever. Thanks to the easy steps
above, I was able to restore my sofa to its original state.
Cleaning your upholstery can be expensive if you choose to
hire expert cleaning services. However, if you carry out your own cleaning like
I did, you’ll cut back on spending and gain more practice for your next
cleaning session.