What’s a party without a good amount of clean up afterward the next day? If your house is left looking spotless after a party, then you’re probably doing something wrong. Regardless of your party acumin, some parties leave quite the mark and that’s what we’re interested in today. Here are some ways you can turn your latest Halloween party cleaning horror story into a success story by learning how to clean these tough (and scary!) stains.  

Spooky Stain #1: Red Wine

Sometimes it’s just not a real party until somebody spills a drink. Whether it’s from an enthusiastic toast or the tail of somebody’s costume bumps a glass over, a wine stain is bound to happen. When it does, don’t panic! Here are some tips for getting that scary stain to go away (until the next party, at least). 

On carpet or furniture (light colored)

• Soak up as much of the excess liquid as you can with a rag or paper towels.
• Make a mixture of slightly warm water and hydrogen peroxide and liquid dish soap (Dawn will work best). 
  • 1 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of dish soap and 1 tablespoon of hydrogen peroxide
• Spray the mixture directly on the stain and around the outer edges
• Let it stand for 2 hours 
• Blot dry with paper towels until no more liquid remains
• Take about 1 half cup of either table salt, baking soda, or even cat litter and pour over the stain area to cover it. Let it sit overnight.
• Vacuum up the applied salt. Repeat as necessary until all of the moisture is gone. 

For darker colored carpets and upholstery 

• Follow the same steps as above but use white vinegar to spray over the stain instead of the dish soap and hydrogen peroxide mixture. You can add a tablespoon of dish soap to the vinegar if desired. 

Spooky Stain #2 Blood 

At even the best parties, accidents can happen. Whether it’s a costume malfunction or a breakdancing contest gone awry, you may find yourself with some spots of blood on your carpet. It may hurt in the moment, but there will definitely be a great story about it later! To clean blood out of your carpet, you’ll want the following:

1 cup of room temperature water

1 to 2 tablespoons of liquid ammonia cleaner

1 half cup of salt

Act fast! The longer blood stays on your carpet, the harder it will be to get out completely. Mix the water and ammonia together and either spray over the stained area or blot it onto the blood with a cloth until the stain is covered. Let that sit for about five minutes and then take some paper towels and pat it dry, being careful not to push it further into the carpet. Once it is mostly dry, apply the salt liberally over the stained area. Let it sit for 2 to 6 hours. Vacuum up the salt and repeat as necessary to get all of the remaining liquid components out of the carpet. 

And with that, you can now tackle two of the most terrifying stains on your home’s carpet. So, now it’s time to embrace the Halloween season and party on!