- Thanks to a substance created to remove water and moisture from missile parts, moms have a new first line of defense in the crayon wars. Get out a can of WD-40 lubricant. Lay the stained surface down on a pad of paper towels, stain side up. Scrape off any solid crayon with a butter knife. Spray the stain with WD-40 and let it sit for a few minutes. Flip the towel over, spray the other side and again let it sit. Squirt some dish-washing detergent onto the stain and work it into the fabric. Replace the paper toweling as it absorbs the stain and gets saturated. Finally, toss the article of clothing into the washing machine and wash in the hottest water recommended for the fabric with laundry detergent and color-safe bleach.
- If you don't have WD-40 around the house, check your cleaning cabinet for a stain remover like Amodex or other fabric pre-wash stain and spot remover. Follow label directions carefully. Check the stain before you dry the item to make sure it came out to avoid making the stain removal process more difficult by cooking it in the dryer. You can always try one of the other methods if you still have crayon stain left.
- The last method uses the crayon's susceptibility to temperature to remove it from fabric. Freeze the item in your freezer for several hours. When frozen hard, the crayon is easier to pick out of the cloth. Once you've scraped out as much as you can, use your hair dryer set on high to soften the remaining crayon residue. Scrape the fabric again with a butter knife edge. Place the fabric stain side down over a thick layer of paper towels or absorbent fabric and iron over the back of the stain with a warm to hot iron. Let the fabric wick up the melted crayon as much as possible. Soak the stain in rubbing alcohol for a half hour, scrub the affected area with a brush and then launder with detergent and all-fabric bleach.
