Make it Monday- White softball pants

This post is going to be a bit picture heavy. Consider yourself warned.

Chances are, if you're reading this, you know my girls play softball. And, they wear white softball pants now... I've been looking for ways to get the dirt out and keep them white. I pinned a Dawn & Peroxide mix a while back that's supposed to work. I looked into it finally and gave it a try. But putting it in a spray bottle and spraying 2 pair of completely soaked in dirt softball pants multiple times a week? No thanks. I saw somewhere that it would work to pour the mix in with hot water, but no where could I find a recipe for amounts. So, I winged it. And I'm sharing the results. Because I have to tell you, this is awesome.

Before we go on though, I must share the rules I've learned. If it's already been in the dryer- this will not work. The fresher the stains, the better. So unfortunately, it's not going to brighten any dingy shirts, or get the stain out you've been working on for a while... Next, Blood. It worked. My daughter had blood on her white jersey sleeve the other night, and there's no trace of it now.

First, take the dirty pants...

Note the grass stains

Next, I filled the washing machine about halfway with hot water. Then got out the Dawn and Hydrogen Peroxide (3%).

I measured out about 1 cup of dawn (amounts do not have to be exact, but close).

And about 2 cups of Peroxide. The recipe is one part Dawn, to 2 parts Peroxide. And from what I've read online, it must be original blue Dawn.

Pour this mixture into the hot water, then add the pants, and let soak about 15 minutes.

 I tend to pull the pants out once or twice and kind of scrub the fabric against itself in the worst spots to help move the process along. After 15 minutes, turn the wash on and run a full cycle. I tried just running the rinse cycle, but it wasn't enough to rinse all the Dawn out. Once the cycle is complete, I throw my normal laundry detergent in, and add more clothes. Dry as usual. 

Now, before I share the after, I have to confess.. The grass stains were a bit tough. I ended up treating these a 2nd time before adding detergent and washing. The end result speaks for itself. Cheap, easy, and I'm telling you these pants are brighter than when we bought them! These 2 have been through many a game and practice already, but I bet you can't tell! I sprayed them with the mixture the two times, but have been soaking them with this recipe since.

Joey felt I needed to capture his cuteness first. :)