Ah, Halloween. The perfect holiday. Not important enough to be forced into awkward family reunion dinners, but a good excuse to dress up, eat unholy amounts of sweets and throw a party. The only downside–the mess waiting for you the following morning.
Fake blood on clothes, foodstuff and wine spilt on upholstery, makeup in hair…it’s all enough to make you scream!
But worry not! We here at Gleem have hot tips from expert domestic cleaners to keep your post-Halloween cleaning less of a nightmare.
Fake Blood & Halloween Makeup on Skin
A classic staple of last-minute-budget Halloween costumes, fake blood is a life-saver, but it can be tricky to remove from skin, especially if it is oil-based. Don’t panic yet! Even if tried and trusted soap and water doesn’t work, there are numerous ways to remove it from skin.
Makeup remover
Does what it says on the tin! This should be your next go-to method, whether it is the cream-kind or makeup removing wet wipes. Other wet wipes may also work.
Coco oil
Or if you have none of this on hand, jojoba oil, or baby oil such as Johnson’s work well as substitutes. Use the same as make-up remover and it should be able to lift the makeup, especially if it is oil-based.
Moisturizer
Put a dab of lotion on a cotton pad and rub at the blood. Petroleum-based moisturizer like Vaseline will work well, and this will mean your skin won’t dry out.
Fake Blood and Halloween Makeup on Clothes
Baking Soda
Mix baking soda with a bit of water to make a paste, rub into the stains. Leave it to settle for a bit, then rinse with warm water.
Rubbing Alcohol
Rubbing alcohol is your friend for lifting makeup and fake blood from clothes and upholstery. Just pour a trickle on and use a cloth or cotton wool ball to wipe down.
Talc Powder
Sprinkle a pinch over dry fabric then rub with a dry cloth after the powder has settled. This is likely not to remove the stain fully, but will make it easier to clean with the methods listed above!
Food and Drink on Upholstery
Food and drink in a room full of drunk people is a recipe for disaster. Chances are you’ll be finding smarties or cupcake wrappers under the couch months down the line. We can’t help with that, but here are some tips to cleaning for cleaning most troublesome food-stuff and out of your carpet.
Chocolate
Scrape away any excess chocolate with a butter knife or your finger, resist the urge to lick, wet a cloth with cold water and non-bleach based cleaning detergent, and scrub until stain is lifted.
Cake frosting
If the frosting is not coloured with food colouring, it should be a simple matter of wiping it away with a damp cloth. If it is coloured, scrape away the excess as before with the chocolate, but don’t rub with a cloth. For clothes, run under a tap. For upholstery, treat with stain lifting products like Vanish and press in. Leave it for a few minutes then hoover the area.
Red wine
One of the most infamous stains, but it’s not nearly as scary as it seems. Simple blot away the excess, pour cold water onto the affected area, blot once again before making a paste from baking powder and water. Apply this generously then hoover once it has dried.
We understand that this is a lot of information to take in, and a lot of work to do during the day following after a night of overindulging on food and drink. So why not call a Gleem cleaner and extend your holiday? Our cleaning teams will be able to handle any stain for a great price. Or if you’ve had an office party, check out our great rates for our commercial cleaning services.
