[lemonthyme]

I have a question on the interim clothes as you are going through weight loss. My budget does not allow for buying brand new and I will be able to reclothe when needed with second hand clothes and feather with a few new pieces. My question is this: when I purchase clothes and they have an overly perfume smell to them, how the heck do you get rid of it?

My goodwill, though very clean and well organized, is my problem. I have bought clothing multiple times - adults and kids and I only seem to really have the problem with ladies clothing. I don't know if they treat the clothing before they sell with "ozone" or the like to rid it of the perfumes ladies use. But the ladies clothing forever smells like the stuff they used to bomb my house after a fire to rid it of the residual smell. Think strong old lady perfume. It stays in the clothing no matter how much soaking, airing on the line, febreezing etc. I'm looking for any suggestions on how to better deal w/the stinky as I don't handle certain scents well, this being one of them. Thank you!

[nonameslob]

You could probably call the local main Goodwill office and ask what they use. Then you can do specific research on how to get rid of the smell. In the meantime, are there any other thrift stores you could try? I have had the issue you're talking about but I'm sure it is awful!

[fadedbluejeans]

You can try closing the items in a plastic garbage bag along with some activated charcoal (or kitty litter which often contains a.c.) or baking soda, for a few days. Or, you can spritz the items with white vinegar or vodka and le tthem air dry. I know it sounds weird, but it works.

[lemonthyme]

Strangely, I forgot about vinegar. Thank you for your suggestions! I am not quite moving down yet in clothing size that I know of, but I needed to get my question out there in hopes soon I can move back down a size.

[mutate9602]

I have a similar problem and fragrances give me horrible migraines. I wash it on the warmest setting recommended on the tag for that article of clothing with a bunch of vinegar and no detergent. The vinegar and warm/hot water helps to dissolve the oils in perfume and built up detergent and fabric softener. After several washes this way (smelling to see when the smells have dissipated), I then hang outside to dry, preferably in the sun. This method doesn't always get rid of fragrances 100%, but usually pretty close. If it still smells really strong after drying, I repeat the process. And btw, spraying febreeze and smelly things on it more than likely is making it worse as multiple strong fragrances are combining to make one horrible smell. I also always use vinegar in the rinse compartment when washing my clothes and use dryer balls instead of sheets and fragrance free detergent. What little smell that remains after the vinegar wash is usually gone after a few wearings and washings. You can also try adding a handful or two of baking soda to the wash cycle, it's pretty good at absorbing smells.