Despite most well-meaning remarks about how difficult it is to keep a white couch clean, you’ve gone ahead and purchased one anyway.
But we can absolutely see the appeal — it’s chic, it’s crisp, and it makes your living room look absolutely gorgeous.
However, it doesn’t change the fact that maintaining it can prove challenging. A small part of you might have died when the sides of your new white couch got slightly scuffed during the move into your living room.
Well, fret not! Here’s everything you need to know on how to keep your white sofa forever white.
1. Spills: Blot, don’t rub.
So you’ve made your first spill on your pristine white couch.
Here’s what to do: Step one, take a couple of deep breaths. Step two, clean the spill. Technique is key here, so you’ll want to blot the stains out instead of rubbing it off.
Rubbing on a stain will only push it deeper into the material and smear it around — the horror! Your best bet is to take your time blotting off the stain gently.
If you’re unsure of what you can use to get the stain off, the quickest solution on hand is to use a dishcloth dampened in dishwashing soap.
Keep putting pressure onto the affected area using your dampened dishcloth. This will help the cloth soak up as much of the spill in the fabric as possible. (Do this until most -if not all- of the spill has been absorbed)
2. Clean dirt and spills immediately.
We cannot stress this enough: as soon as you spill something on your white couch, you need to clean it off immediately.
Don’t wait till the next day, because the longer the stain stays on your couch, the harder it will be to remove.
Our favorite 1-fits-all method to removing stains is to spill some baking soda powder onto the affected surface (make sure it’s dry), leave on for 20-30 minutes, and then vacuum it all off. This removes most stains instantly like magic.
3. Treat your couch with a fabric protector.
Play your cards right, and you might never ever get a spill stain on your white couch.
The better preventive measure though, is to treat your couch with a fabric protector that renders it stain and spill-resistant, much like the fabric protector you’d use on your expensive suede shoes. This would be one of the best ways to keep your white couch clean.
You can DIY it with the Scotchgard Fabric & Upholstery Protector, which you periodically spray two light coats of and you’ll be good to go.
4. Lint roll daily.
Have pets at home? Then pet hair will definitely be a problem for your white couch. But no matter — by lint rolling your couch daily, you’ll stop hair from taking over the entirety of your sofa.
All you need is less than five minutes of your time to roll your way through the couch and remove any pet hair.
Better yet – grab your vacuum and suck up all that extra dust and mites that might be lurking in the weaves of your couch. Lint roller + vacuum = the best combo. 😉
It really is a lot easier to handle that little bit of hair daily than to do an extreme sweep every once in a while. This also keeps them from getting trapped inside the fabric weaves (which is an utter nightmare!).
5. Keep it out of the sun.
All of us love a beautifully-sunlit home, but the harsh reality is that the very same natural light you love is the biggest culprit of furniture discoloration.
You don’t have to turn your living room into a cave, but it definitely helps to keep your white couch out of direct sunlight.
Having a UV filter installed on your windows isn’t such a bad idea, either. It is really the UV rays that break down dye pigments in our furniture fabric at the end of the day, causing the colors to fade.
In any case, keeping your white couch away from harsh direct sunlight will preserve its whiteness from turning yellow. After all, you did buy a white couch; not a beige one.
6. Practice good hygiene (on the couch!)
That’s right – good hygiene goes a long way.
Have the habit of washing your hands and feet before jumping onto the couch to avoid leaving oily/dirty residue on the couch fabric.
Your couch is actually an avenue for accumulated dirt and can be one of the dirtiest places in your home even if you don’t realize it.
This is also why you should avoid eating and drinking on the couch, as you’ll surely not want to soil your couch with food.
7. Use a slipcover for easy cleaning.
Think about all the times you stained your couch (white or not) and thought: “Wow, I wish I could throw my couch into the wash.”
Well, you can. Sort of.
It is possible with a sofa slipcover. Cleaning your sofa feels 100 times easier with a slipcover that you can simply remove and toss into the wash.
They aren’t just for easy cleaning – they’re also great for maintaining the whiteness of the couch (or rather, its covers)! There is more than 1 shade of white out there and with slipcovers, you could have it all.
What more could a white couch lover ask for?
Take our sofa slipcover fabrics for a test run by having our WHITE fabric samples sent right to your doorstep:
1) Cotton Canvas White (Pure Cotton)
2) Madison White (Pure Cotton)
3) Pure Linen White (Pure Linen)