Thread: I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE.....Getting Funky Smells out of costumes

Hi there, I know there have been threads about this before but I can't seem to find the right one...hmmm.....

So I got 2 "new" to me Bellas from 2 different fellow bhuzzers and they smell

the first one smells like cherries, which is somwhat pleasant

but the second smells like wet/damp or fish

I dipped (not longer than 2 mins, cause I freaked out) both entire costumes into the sink using regular detergent, the stones, sequins and fabric seem ok, but now that it has dried, it still SMELLS!

I can deal with the cherry smell (though I'm not a perfume person so I'd rather rid the smell if I can), but the fish smell, I can't deal with!!

Any suggestions?????

I have done the following with a used costume that had an overwhelming perfume odor -

Fill a spray bottle with half vodka, half water. Spray the costume and leave it out to dry. Be careful of areas with any metal, such as rhinestone chain, so that it doesn't get too wet, stay wet, and get rusty. Repeat if necessary.

Fill the bottom of a large container (such as a big Rubbermaid type) with unscented regular/cheap (unused, of course) kitty litter. Place a thin cotton towel (like a flour sack towel) over it. Put the costume on top of the towel. Pu the lid on and let it sit in there for several days. You can set an open box or sachet of baking soda in there, too.

Put it out in the sun for a short period of time (couple hours?)

Replace the lining with new cotton fabric.

If the skirt is a separate piece from a belt & bra, give it a good washing. If it has sequin trim, test for colorfastness before washing the whole thing. If there is a chiffon skirt that is attached to the belt, consider removing it to wash, then stitching it back on.

Wash em. Normally Bellas could be washed carefully. I did it with a very mild shampoo , then rinse out and hang up wet.

I hung a Bella out in the garage for about a month and sprayed it with a special spray. It is tolerable now.

Good luck.

There's an article on my web site about this: Removing Odors from Smelly Belly Dance Costumes

Definitely replace the linings, I think fresh dry air and sunshine do wonders, and rinse in woolite, you may have to wash it and dry it out a few times get rid of the smell.

I am not a big fan of using Fabreeze, but they now have a special spray for workout gear (i.e., sweat) and it is a life saver in our house, for my husband's soccer stuff. Assuming that the fishy smell comes from sweat, that could be a useful weapon.

I get it at Dick's Sporting Goods, Febreze® Extreme Odor Eliminator - For Sport-Related Odors

"Oust" air sanitizer spray works miracles. I ordered an Afghan tribal bra and belt, and although the velvet base fabric was new (embellishments were authentic recycled fabric and coins - beautiful!) it came with a burning rubber odor, extremely unpleasant and very strong. Hung the set in a spare room and sprayed Oust above and below (was afraid to spray directly on the fabric at first, then got bolder when I saw the fabric did not discolor, cause these things stank). Did this a couple of times a day for 3-4 days and the odor is entirely gone. If you had the bad luck to get a whiff of the original burning tire smell, you'd agree this result is nothing short of a miracle.

Side note: the Oust was scented "Clean Scent" and this scent did not linger on the fabric. I just gave the set a sniff (it's been well over a month since I tried this experiment) and there is no smell whatsoever. Nice.

Most odors are deposited on the inside of garments, so if applying any kind of spray, I spray the inside of the costume, not the outside.

Of course, there are exceptions to the "inside" rule: the outside edges of costumes, especially those of the bra top, would be prone to retaining odor. And food odors (ahhhh . . . remembering smelling like an olive oil refinery after dancing at Greek restaurants) permeate everywhere!

I have never washed, dipped or otherwise really "wetted down" any of my costumes. But if you all say it's safe . . .

Deborah

I had an issue with one pre-owned costume. Even my old reliable "Fresh Again" spray didn't work, which is usually great. Nor did hand washing/soaking. Both reduced the funk, but it lingered. I finally rubbed some lavender essential oil on the aromatically challenged areas (translation: underarm curves) and that did it. Lavender does have a natural antibiotic in it (or anti-microbial? something). Anyway. It works great, unless you have an aversion to lavender.

I washed an Abla bra and belt which smelled like cigerette smoke and a We3 set which was rank with body odor. But you really have to wash and rinse. You can't simply dip them. I used Dawn dish washing detergent. I like the stuff with Lavender essence. It seems to have worked well.

{{{HUGS}}

okay, thanks everyone. I tried hanging out in the sunshine, that didn't work. Trying the cat litter option now, just put the costumes in a rubbermiad bin, will check back in 3-4 days. Vodka option will be next if that doesn't work.

Originally Posted by tahiradancer

I washed an Abla bra and belt which smelled like cigerette smoke and a We3 set which was rank with body odor. But you really have to wash and rinse. You can't simply dip them. I used Dawn dish washing detergent. I like the stuff with Lavender essence. It seems to have worked well.

{{{HUGS}}

wash and rinse - so how long would you leave in the water/soap mixture????

Change the soap/water bath also if you doing it more than once.

I submerge the costume for about a minute, then agitate for a minute or so, then rinse 2 - 3 times until the water runs clear. Total is approx. 7 - 10 mins. More than that and there is a higher chance of damaging the decorations. Then roll in thick towels to get as much water out as possible. And I hang them with more towels under them on the shower bar i the bathroom, turning every 30 mins - and hour.

Oh, I also remove the lining before washing and replace it after the costume has been bathed and dried.

{{{HUGS}}}

Never washed a Bella but I have a friend who had to wash all of her Bella's as well as other costumes. She had no problem with any decoration etc. I have washed several vintage Ablas as well as my Pharaonics and never had a problem.
I fill the machine w/water and Woolite. I hand dip and swish and swirl for about 6-8 minutes then as above rinse 2-3 times and roll in beach towels. I hang outside on a clothing rack to air dry. I did open the lining and removed the padding from the vintage costumes first.

I would like to try the Oust spray at some point... sometimes the cotton batik fabrics from India have a very distinct smell that will not come out after 20 washings! The higher end fabrics do not have the same odor.

Hope you get rid of the funky smells!!!

Linah

I have washed many heavily decorated costumes in my top loader as well.
Fill washer first with mild detergent & water, swish around...add costume and let soak 3-5 minutes...I keep the lid open & machine is not agitating.
After soaking I pull costume out into a clean bucket or dish pan, let the water spin out, wrap my costume in large towels, so that none of it touches the washer...place back into washer evenly & complete the spin cycle. Remove it, fill with fresh water to rinse & do it all over again.
I love my top loader for all hand washables, not just costumes. I will never purchase a front loader again.

Also, if you use uniform sprays, such as "Fresh Again, generously after every use, it prevents odor build-up & thread rot by neutralizing the PH.

Just a side note: I use drawer liners or sachets in my costume drawers/closets/boxes...I try to remember to tell buyers so they don't think it is perfume...I probably forget more times than not...sorry

Good Luck!

hi, so I tried the cat litter for about 1 week (forgot about it since I started a new job). both costumes still smell. I think the "fishy" one smells worse. It's now the weekend, I will try maybe the vodka/water mixture?

What's the advantage of using vodka over straight up Isopropyl alcohol?

For some of you who have washed costumes before, have you done this with the heavily beaded parts? Bras & belts? I have one that reeeeeeks of body odor!!! The skirt smells, but I'm pretty sure a good washing will fix the skirt. The bra smells the worst and it's a Sim, so it's very heavily beaded. I plan on replacing the lining, but I suspect that's not going to solve the problem.

Sorry for the hijack!

Originally Posted by marsbar

What's the advantage of using vodka over straight up Isopropyl alcohol?

You can have a shot or two while you clean your costume! Suddenly, you won't care if it smells or not.

Seriously, I'm sure there's a reason, I have no idea what it is though. Other than you can't make a dirty martini with isopropyl alcohol.

No problem about the hijack, its along the same questioning.

Originally Posted by Friedokrarocks

For some of you who have washed costumes before, have you done this with the heavily beaded parts? Bras & belts? I have one that reeeeeeks of body odor!!! The skirt smells, but I'm pretty sure a good washing will fix the skirt. The bra smells the worst and it's a Sim, so it's very heavily beaded. I plan on replacing the lining, but I suspect that's not going to solve the problem.

Sorry for the hijack!

I have done this with an Abla bra and belt. This was a costume which was worn in an Arabic night club where smoking was permitted so not only did I have body odor to deal with, but smoke and really heavy perfume. The skirt looked grey when I bought it. After washing, it turned out to be a beautiful light lavender.

Remove the lining. Cold water wash with Dawn dishwashing detergent. You can use a scented one. I like the Lavender essence. Swish for a couple of mins, rinse until the water runs clear, roll in towels to blot dry, hang and turn regularly. If you need to reshape the bra cups, citrus fruit works well.

{{{HUGS}}}

Originally Posted by phillyraqs

You can have a shot or two while you clean your costume! Suddenly, you won't care if it smells or not.

Seriously, I'm sure there's a reason, I have no idea what it is though. Other than you can't make a dirty martini with isopropyl alcohol.

Love this! Makes total sense. LOL ..l;,

I washed the skirt in some Woolite today. The color started to bleed out, so it was a very short wash. However, it was long enuf to do the trick. No more stinky skirt. I'm scared to death to wash the bra. :Aohmy: I suppose I need to decide which is worse, the fear of washing or the stench! LOL

Originally Posted by Friedokrarocks

I suppose I need to decide which is worse, the fear of washing or the stench! LOL

..l;,..l;,..l;, yeah I guess I need to decide this too!

Originally Posted by SaNoorah

..l;,..l;,..l;, yeah I guess I need to decide this too!

Princess Farhana actually has a great article on how to clean your costumes...you pretty much fill a bath tub with soapy water, swish your costumes through them. Drain, and repeat several times before rinsing it completely with water. Then you just lay it out to dry! I would even add a cap-full

If you must wash I recommend using this method especially since they're Bellas...I've washed Egyptian lycra costumes and Turkish fringe monsters in the wash before with no problems but I would be iffy about throwing a Bella in the wash...I've seen Swarovski crystals shatter from impact before and I'm not sure how well they'd do hitting the walls of a washer.

Originally Posted by marsbar

Princess Farhana actually has a great article on how to clean your costumes...you pretty much fill a bath tub with soapy water, swish your costumes through them. Drain, and repeat several times before rinsing it completely with water. Then you just lay it out to dry! I would even add a cap-full

This is exactly how I washed the skirt. You would feel alright washing the super beaded bras & belts like this too? I'm not sure why I think they would behave any differently than the skirt. It just feels scary.

Originally Posted by Friedokrarocks

This is exactly how I washed the skirt. You would feel alright washing the super beaded bras & belts like this too? I'm not sure why I think they would behave any differently than the skirt. It just feels scary.

I wouldn't feel scared doing this at all but I would remove all of the padding first to allow the bra to dry faster. I've tossed heavily beaded Egyptian bras into my washer without a problem (tucked into two layers of lingerie laundry bags) and swishing a bra around in soapy water shouldn't be a problem either. I plan to do this with my Bellas sometime next year.

Originally Posted by Linahdancer

sometimes the cotton batik fabrics from India have a very distinct smell that will not come out after 20 washings!

Linah

Yes, I know exactly what you mean. Incidentally, I have a hoodie from Mexico that had this issue, and a hip scarf with fringe too.

One thing that has worked well for me is to have a scented oil burner (sorry, not sure what they're called in English) in the room and drape the fabric to ensure max exposure to scent. This has worked in cases where the Febreeze and the incense did not work (and I'm not washing 32 inch fringe... I don't do so well at macrame )

I can't wash these costumes any more!!!

I tried the vodka/water mixture (only 1x) hubby looked at me like I was nuts and told me to use the cheap stuff. ..l;,..l;,

I just washed/rinsed/repeated like 5x each. The "cherry" one is less strong. and the other one doesn't smell like fish luckily, now it just smells damp, hubby came home and asked "what the smell was" (equated it to poop), lovely, I went from fish to poop smell. My hand are raw from the water.

oh, and the reason why the "fihy" one smelled even more, is the fabric didn't take to the fabric freshener I orginally used.

I give up!!! ,f::

dont give up. stck that puppy out in the air a few days and try a wash again maybe even some with some anti bacterial!