Get Tips for Busting Red Wine, Gravy, Berry Sauce and Other Pesky Holiday Stains

Nov. 15, 2010 — -- As the holidays draw closer, you may be preparing to have guests in your home. Food and wine will flow, creating the potential for spills and unsightly stains.

What's a host to do?

Good Housekeeping magazine is offering the solutions to some of the toughest stains that may crop up this season.

Here are tips -- from the magazine -- for quickly handling spills on linens:

The stain: Red wine.

The quick solution: Blot it up right away. Wet a cloth with cold water and sponge the stain. Put dry paper towels above the spot (and below, if possible). For small spills, apply a bit of table salt to absorb the wine.

To find out how to handle these tough stains the day after, click HERE. To get solutions for a specific kind of stain from the Good Housekeeping StainBuster, click HERE.

The stain: Berry spills.

The quick solution: Gently scoop up the berries with a spoon, then dab the spot with a cool, damp sponge. Pour a little rubbing alcohol onto the stain. Rinse.

The stain: Gravy.

The quick fix: Scrape up spill right away. Blot with dry paper towels -- or even a piece of bread.

The stain: Candle wax.

The quick fix: Put out the offending candle immediately. Scrape the hardened wax with your fingernail or a butter knife. Sponge colored-wax spots with dry cleaning solvent. Put paper towels over remaining wax, then apply a warm, dry iron.