If there’s one thing that seems inevitable, it’s that pillows turn yellow over the years. Perhaps the quickest solution is to just get brand new pillows, as the discolored yellowish tint just looks dirty and plain unattractive. Covering it up with a pillowcase or protector is only a temporary solution and anything but ideal.
However, with just a couple of household items and a bit of spare time, you can easily make your yellow pillows look like new again. In other words, there’s no need to throw those pillows away just yet, because this whitening solution truly does wonders.
Pillows also tend to be filled with dead skin, bugs and dust mites, so it’s important to rinse them thoroughly and often.
What you’ll need
You’ll need a couple of items for this homemade recipe. You’ll need half a cup of borax, a cup of bleach, a cup of regular laundry detergent and another cup of dishwater detergent. You probably have all these common items laying around somewhere in the house, which makes this method versatile, painless and quick.
For the whitening trick, we will need to wash the pillows in a washing machine. Be sure to check your pillow tags to see if they’re machine-washable. This is the case with most cotton, down and synthetic pillows, but it’s best to make sure, just in case.
Soaking your pillows
At first, you want to soak the pillows in hot water. You can just put them in a large container or your bathtub, for example, but some top-loading washing machines also have a built-in soak feature that you can use. Make sure you use hot water, this will aid the mixture in cleaning those stains.
Making the mixture
The mixture is truly where the magic happens and it’s incredibly easy to make. Simply grab a large pot of water and let it boil. When it starts boiling, go ahead and add the cups of borax and detergent to the water. Stir thoroughly and make sure that all of the ingredients have dissolved completely.
If you’re not too keen on using a cooking pot for this mixture, simply boil the water and pour in into a bucket. You can add the rest of the ingredients over there, but don’t forget to stir. It might take a little bit longer to dissolve, but it’ll do the trick as well.
Apply the solution
Now that you’ve created the perfect whitening solution, pour it into your washing machine (or your bathtub/container). You also need to add the bleach in this step. Next, let the pillows soak for a good fifteen minutes, and flip the pillows around half-way. Let it soak for another quarter.
Wash the pillows
Now that the pillows have been soaked completely, it’s time to do the rough work and wash them. Let them follow a full washing cycle, preferably the second rinse option if that’s available on your machine.
Let them dry
Even though they’re completely clean, it’s important to make sure that the pillows are completely dry before you start using them again. Down pillows can be put in the dryer on an ‘air’ setting, and it’s definitely safe to dry synthetic pillows on low heat.
An absolutely great tip is to add a couple of tennis balls into the dryer – this will give your pillows some much-needed fluff and will make them feel like new.
What to do with foam pillows?
Foam pillows are a little bit trickier, and it’s best not to use the strong solution above. You can, however, still clean them thoroughly and get rid of the yellow discoloration. Fit the foam pillows into your washer, preferably two at once.
Pour a cup of a gentle laundry detergent in your washing machine, and choose the most delicate washing cycle. After a few minutes, set the cycle to ‘spin’. Regularly check if the pillows are still wet – if that’s the case, leave them on ‘spin’. It’s safe to remove them from the washer when they’re damp, but they shouldn’t feel soaked.
Immediately after, throw the pillows in the dryer on the lowest possible setting, and don’t forget to add a few tennis balls for the fluff.
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