How to Remove Chewing Gum From Clothes

If you’ve sat in a glob of gum that some rude person has stuck to a park bench or left on a restaurant or movie seat, it’s not the end of your ensemble. Stay cool and get the gum out of washable clothing with a minimum of chemicals. Fold non-washable garments with the sticky gum on top and take promptly to the dry cleaner for stain removal.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Ice
• Bowl
• Freezer
• Butter knife

1. Rub a piece of ice on the gum. Leave the ice on the stain for several minutes until the gum is as cold as possible.

2. Soak the gum stained garment in a bowl of ice or fold the garment, stain side up, and put it in the freezer, if the stain is big or the sticky mess has spread.

3. Chill the gum until it's frozen then crack and pull the hardened gum off the fabric. Scrape away gum still stuck to the fibers with a butter knife. Use a laundry stain treatment on any residual stain and wash in warm water.

Tips & Warnings

• Be careful when using a knife to scrape the gum off and children should not do this step. Ask an adult to help.

• This may not work on all fabric.

References

• CBS News: How Do You Get Gum Off Fabric
• Iowa State University Extension: Quick 'N Easy Stain Removal