how to clean underarm stains

There's nothing quite like getting a new shirt for a job interview and sweating straight through it. Even if you're not nervous, it's not uncommon to sweat through your shirt leaving perfect outlines of your armpits on the outside of the fabric. But if you're required to wear a collared shirt on a fairly frequent basis, you know how annoying armpit stains and ring around the collar can be.

You wash and scrub, pulling out all the tips and tricks you can think of the get the stubborn stains out but they only lightly fade. The armpits are still clearly yellow with a faint smell of B.O. while the dark ring around the collar makes you question your shower habits. It can feel like an impossible thing to rid your shirts of but it can be done, no dry cleaner needed.

Everyone's favorite "Laundry Queen," Melissa Pateras has a really easy trick for getting those stubborn areas clean. The best thing about her hack is that it involves products that you likely already have in your house.

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After one of her followers reached out asking about getting rid of armpit stains in shirts that also held on to unpleasant odor, Pateras had a quick solution. Instead of just telling the user what to do, she demonstrates the process step-by-step. She pulls out a white button up shirt that is lightly stained around the collar and in the armpit region, laying it on a white towel.

"Then you're going to completely cover the stains with some hydrogen peroxide, making sure that you're applying it straight from the bottle because it's light sensitive. That's why the bottle's brown because if it's exposed to light, it'll be ineffective," Pateras explains.

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In the video she demonstrates on a white shirt, but according to Clotheslyne, hydrogen peroxide can be used on colored clothes as well. To be safe, though, try adding it to an inconspicuous area first to check for discoloration. If it doesn't cause that piece of fabric to become discolored then you can proceed to with use.

Hydrogen peroxide is not the end of the hack for Pateras; the second step is pulling out the Dawn dish soap. "Once you've applied the Dawn to the stain, you're just going to take your finger and very gently rub it in. Once you've done that you're just going to get some baking soda and sprinkle it on, making sure to cover it completely. Once the stain is completely covered, get a brush. It doesn't matter what brush you use, you can even use a toothbrush for this but I like a power brush cause it's a lot less work," Pateras says.

Again, if the item is not white it's best to test all steps in a small inconspicuous area first. Nobody wants white armpits on a blue shirt, and since all materials are not made at the same quality, it's probably best to do a test every time you're trying it on a different item of clothing.

After using the brush to gently scrub the stains, Pateras advises to allow it to sit for five minutes before adding more peroxide and scrubbing once more. The treated item sits for anywhere from an hour to overnight before you toss it into the washing machine like normal. An eager viewer gave the trick a try and excitedly reported back with a shirt that looks like it was recently purchased.

"I need to talk to you guys about this. Okay, so you see this white shirt? You see how the collar looks nice and clean? You see how there are no discernible stains in the underarm area? Yeah, that's cause I did exactly what this person told me to do," the woman says referring to Pateras. "I have tried so many things trying to get stains out of my white shirt. Shout, OxiClean, all kinds of sh-t."

The woman, who goes by Nat on TikTok, says she thought her shirt was beyond saving but this hack now has it looking nearly brand new. So if you've been struggling with getting armpit stains out of your shirts, give this hack a try and see how it works out for you.