Every night we crawl into bed, pull up the sheet, and fall soundly asleep in our bed with our head on our bed pillows. This routine rarely changes. You can probably count the times that you’ve thoroughly cleaned and washed your pillows on one hand.
With all of the oil, grease, and sweat our scalp releases, you’d think the practice would be more common, but for whatever reason it’s not. That all changes today! If you’re new to cleaning bed pillows, we’ve put together a simple, easy-to-understand guide to get started.
Items You May Need to Clean Bed Pillows
- Laundry Detergent
- Baking Soda
- Hot Water
- Stain Stick
- Dish Washer Detergent (powdered)
Remove the Pillow Cases
Before you do any kind of cleaning or washing, you need to remove the cases from each of your bed pillows. Shake the case out thoroughly, and then take your pillow outdoors.
Now, take a few minutes to beat out any dust, debris, or food particles that are stuck to your pillows. Once that’s finished, take your vacuum cleaner, with an attachment, and carefully sweep along the bed pillow. This will ensure the removal of any residue that’s been left behind.
Time for the Stain Stick
Stain sticks are handy tools that can help in a variety of situations, including if you have dirty bed pillows. Even with pillow cases, the oil and grease in our scalp and face collect as we sleep, leaving unsightly, gigantic yellow stains behind.
While a thorough washing will do most of the work, it’s always a good idea to stain stick each and every one of your bed pillows first. Sure, it’s an extra step to add to your house cleaning list, but the stain stick working in combination with your washing detergent will make a huge difference in the end result.
Read the Instructions
Before you start to wash your bed pillows, make sure to read the labels to see if they are washing machine safe. Most pillows are perfectly alright in the wash, but some are made out of synthetic materials, and can’t come in contact with water.
If you encounter this problem, simply spraying a mix of lavender oil and water on the pillows can help freshen them up. You can also take a few dryer sheets, and place them inside of the pillow case on either side to improve the smell.
Washing Process
The steps required to wash your bed pillows are a little more intensive than a regular load of laundry, but the results are absolutely worth it.
It’s important that you use the hottest water possible, as this will be the most effective at cleaning any stains that have really worked their way into the pillow fabric. Add one cup of laundry detergent, and one cup of powder dish washing detergent into the hot water, and then stir around.
Once the mixing is out of the way, put some eco-friendly house cleaning bleach into the mix. You can use regular bleach too if you want. Finally, add a half cup of baking soda for an extra strong clean.
Drying Out
Once your bed pillows have made it through the cleaning cycle, they should emerge looking almost entirely brand new.
If you are worried about bed bugs or other creepy crawlies, run them through a cycle in the dryer. You can select a delicate cycle to keep them soft. Running them through the dryer will eradicate any pests that might have hitched a ride since you’ve had the pillows.
Once your bed pillows are completely dry, they are perfectly safe to put back on your bed. With that out of the way, you can focus on other house cleaning items around the house. Good luck!