How To Clean Plush Toys

Soft toys are one of the favourite toys of children. Over time, however, they accumulate dust and dirt, and become infested with mites, bacteria, and bad odour. And of course, you, as responsible parents, ask yourself if there is a way to clean the toys without damaging them.

How To Clean Plush Toys?

Fact is, the hardest part is not cleaning the toys, but the part where you have to somehow get them out of your child's hands. If your child is too young, you will have a hard time explaining why you need to take their favourite toy away. To avoid tears or temper tantrums, wait for the little one to fall asleep and then take action.

Once the toy is in your hands, first examine the label carefully to see if it can be machine-washed or not. Fortunately, most modern toys can be washed in the washing machine, but you should still check the label to be sure.

As a standard, manufacturers indicate on each label of a stuffed toy whether it can be washed and if so, how many degrees and whether it can be centrifuged or dried in a dryer after washing.

Wet cleaning of plush toys

If the "plushies" can be washed, then you have two options: put them in the washing machine or wash them by hand.

How to clean plush toys in the washing machine?

● Before putting the toy in the washing machine, it is advisable to remove dust from it. You can do this either with a vacuum cleaner or with a clean, slightly damp cloth.

● If the toy has batteries or other items that may be damaged during washing, remove them beforehand.

● Put the toy in a mesh bag or zipper bag.

● Put the soft toy in the washing machine and use a delicate wash cycle to wash it.

● Use powdered detergents for delicate fabrics or baby clothes.

Plush toys are best dried outdoors and in indirect sunlight.

Two small tricks:

● If the toy has a long coat, you can lightly and carefully brush it with a brush before you hang it to dry

● To be absolutely sure that the stuffing inside the stuffed toy will dry completely, turn the hair dryer on low and nicely blow the "puff" on all sides for a few minutes

How to clean soft toys manually?

● If you have a comfortable, deep washbasin in the bathroom, it will do the perfect job for hand-washing the toy. If you do not have such a convenient sink, you can use a suitable basin.

● Fill the sink, pan, or bucket with cold or cool water and add a little baby liquid soap or shampoo into it. Do not overdo it with the soap.

● Put the soft toy in the water and rub it gently with your fingers so that the soapy water penetrates into the stuffing of the toy.

● Wash the plush toy without pressing or rubbing.

● Rinse it under cold running water. The rinse should continue until the water has washed away all the foam from the soap. You can also rinse by filling the container with clean cold water to immerse the toy in. In this case, however, you will need to change the water in the pan until it is completely clean.

● Do not twist the toy to squeeze out the water. Instead, just squeeze it between your palms. This will drain a large amount of water from it. Then take a clean, white cloth and wrap it around the toy, and press it again with your palms.

● Allow the plush toy to dry in the open air. If you wash it in the winter and this option is not very convenient, place it in an indoor space, but away from appliances that emit high heat.

● To dry it well and not to spoil its shape, hold it by the ear or tail with a clothes peg.

Dry cleaning of plush toys

Dry cleaning methods for soft toys are applied when:

● Toys cannot be machine-washed or hand-washed.

● They are very delicate.

● They are very old and may break when washing.

Cleaning with baking soda

This method is very effective if the toys have accumulated a lot of dust, smell bad, or are too old to be washed. To clean with soda you will need:

● Garbage bag

● Baking soda

● Vacuum cleaner

● Clothes brush

Put the toy(s) (if smaller) in the trash bag, pour 2 to 3 tablespoons of baking soda and tie the bag tightly. Once the bag is safely tied, lift it up and shake it vigorously so that the soda can adhere well to the toys. Shake a few more times and leave the toys inside the bag for about 20 minutes.

Then, take the toy(s) out of the bag and clean the soda with a brush or a vacuum cleaner.

You can successfully replace the baking soda with corn starch or wheat flour. The only condition is that you do not use flour to clean pure white plush toys, as they are likely to stain.

Cleaning stains and odours from stuffed toys

It is not a big secret that, over time, even the most expensive toys start to smell pretty unpleasant, and spots of food, spilled drinks, and fingerprints of small greasy fingers appear on them. If your child's toy has such contaminated spots or stains, you can either remove them with a suitable detergent, which you can buy from specialist stores, or "mix" one of the following household cleaners:

● Mix 3 tablespoons of liquid soap or dishwashing liquid with ¼ teaspoon of ammonia and ¾ tablespoon of water. Stir the solution well and apply only on the stain. Do not rub to prevent the product from entering the toy. Wait a few minutes, then wipe with a clean, slightly damp cloth

● Make a mixture of ¼ tablespoon water, ½ tablespoon medical alcohol, and ½ tablespoon dishwashing liquid or liquid soap. Stir the solution and apply on the stained spot. Wait a few minutes and wipe with a damp cloth

● Pour half a cup of white vinegar into a bowl of warm water and soak the toy in the vinegar solution for about an hour

How to kill mites on soft toys?

If the toy is very old, or if you do not want to worry about dust mites on it, there is a very simple method that you can do to destroy any bacteria that may have stuck to your child's favourite toy:

● Take the toy

● Put it in a sturdy bag

● Place it overnight in the freezer

If the toy is too big to freeze in the freezer, then wait for winter to come and leave it out for 2 - 3 days . Of course, before you "punish" the toy outside on the porch, you need to put it in a sturdy bag so that it does not get wet.

How often to clean plush toys?

Hardly anyone will give you specific instructions on how often you should clean your child's soft toys. On the one hand, it depends on how often your child plays with the toy, how old your child is, and whether they suffer from allergies and asthma . On the other hand, you can tell yourself when a "puff" needs cleaning. Are there are stains on the toy? Is it dirty? Does it smell bad? If yes, it's time to clean.

And yet, here's what experts recommend ...

Soft plush toys should be cleaned every two weeks, and if the child is very little or allergic, it is advisable to clean the toys every week. Of course, cleaning the toys does not necessarily mean washing them every time.

If not soiled, you can wet a clean cloth with cold water and wipe the entire toy with it. If you are afraid that the moisture from the towel will wet the stuffing of the toy and make it a breeding ground for mold or mites, then you can also clean the stuffed toy with the vacuum cleaner.

Why is it important to clean children's soft toys regularly?

We mentioned at the beginning that children, especially young children, love their plush toys. They love to:

● Hug their toys while sleeping

● Play with their toys all day long, and do not part with them even when walking in the park or playing in the sandbox with other children

But these are still toys and inevitably get dirty after a while. And the children carry them with them constantly, kissing them, hugging them, and burying their little faces in them during sleep.

If the soft toys are not cleaned regularly, different bacteria will stick to them over time, mites can form inside them, which is dangerous for the health of children.

To avoid such dangers, cleaning plush toys is of utmost importance. As has been made clear, the cleaning itself does not require much effort on your part. Quite often, it is simple and easy enough to clean the soft toy of dust with the vacuum cleaner and freshen it up by wiping it with a clean, slightly damp cloth.