The stinky shirt

kara
It's a pretty shirt, am I right?

Gorgeous Boden silk-viscose blend blouse, excellent condition, $30. What could go wrong?

When I get thrifted clothes online, I always wash them before I wear them. That’s, like, the cardinal rule of thrifting. This situation was no different. Silk can be sketchy to wash, but dry cleaning doesn’t always do it for me, and honestly, I’ve never washed anything silk that has disintegrated immediately. The washing instructions said to wash in cold water, so that’s what I did. The shirt had sort of a funky smell, but I figured it would come out in the wash.

I air dried the shirt, then ironed it. OH MY GOODNESS, I’ve never smelled anything like it before. The funky smell turned into the death funk. I nearly passed out. Whoever wore this shirt must have had some serious body odor problem.

So I washed it again, ironed it again, same problem. I let it dry outside in the sunshine. Nothing. I dry cleaned it using Dryel. Still stunk. I tried Febreeze. Nope.

At this point, I was starting to lose hope, so I did two things. 1) I contacted ThredUp and explained the situation over chat. They immediately refunded my money in store credit and told me to keep the item or dispose of it. 2) I logged onto r/ThredUp on Reddit and begged for help.

I got a lot of feedback, almost immediately. It turns out that stinky clothes are something that Redditor thrifters feel really passionately about. Someone recommended soaking in hydrogen peroxide. I tried that, no dice. Someone else said, try vodka. Unfortunately, vodka did not work for me. Although, it was a good use for the vodka I had sitting in my house for ages since I stopped drinking a year and a half ago. Vinegar and baking soda also did not work. Someone else recommended Lysol Sanitizer Detergent. This gave me a little hope, because washing it with the Lysol got out about 40% of the smell. Still not good enough to wear it, but better than before. And now, I wash every new thrifted piece of clothing with it. Lysol do not pay me for this review. You can buy it here.

I was almost about to throw in the towel (ha ha) when someone gave me the most ridiculously complex process which required me buying things I’d never bought before. I joked, I’ve spent about $30 on trying to clean a $30 shirt. But this was a game changer.

Buy Biz Stain and Odor Eliminator Powder. Also buy washing soda (not baking soda). Get a large bowl, put in 1 cup of hot water (not boiling, but hot enough to say “ouch” when you put your finger in it), about 130 degrees F. Dissolve 3 tablespoons of the Biz and the Washing Soda in hot water until it is dissolved. Then add warm water enough to fill the bowl, mix well, and add the shirt. Let it soak for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, use a spoon to agitate the water. Let it soak for another hour. Then gently squeeze the water out of the shirt, wash it in the washing machine on gentle cycle using a good but gentle detergent like Dreft or Woolite. Air dry.

This worked a treat.

So now, no shirt is too stinky to purchase. Go forth and buy. You’re welcome.