real life

"The quick and easy hack I use to restore my grubby white shoelaces to their former glory."

 

2017 was without a doubt the year of the sneaker. White sneakers, if we’re being specific.

You know what comes with white sneakers? White laces. Only they don’t stay white, do they?

After trekking your crisp white sneaks all over town, they started becoming less crisp and more grey dishwater sooner than you’d hoped. And while it’s easy enough to keep your white sneakers white if you’re bothered to buy that spray stuff, the laces are a bit trickier.

I found myself thinking about how to tackle this first world problem a couple of weeks ago, as I looked at my very tired, very grubby shoelaces. That’s when I came up with this quick and easy method of returning them to their former, pearly white glory.

It’s not hard and requires almost zero effort. You’ve also probably got everything you need sitting in your laundry cupboard. See the results below…

BEFORE and AFTER. Image: Supplied.
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Just dazzling, aren't they?

Now look, this ain't rocket science. I don't claim to have invented this method - it's pretty much laundry 101. But if your white laces have seen better days, give this a go.

1. Spray

Unlace your grubby white laces from your equally grubby white sneakers. Discard sneakers, you can deal with those later.

Grab a stain remover spray - I used Preen Vanish Oxiaction Stain Remover because it's pink and my mum uses it - and spray your laces until they're completely covered. Then give the particularly dirty spots a good rub down.

2. Soak

Locate a Tupperware container from your hectic Tupperware drawer. Thankfully, you're not going to need a matching lid for this step.

Dissolve half a scoop of washing powder - I had Biozet Attack on the shelf - in some warm water and dunk your laces right in there. Then go watch Netflix/get a coffee/do whatever people do for an hour while they soak.

3. Rinse

Once your laces have finished taking their bath, rinse them out under cold water. While you're at it, be sure to pay some extra attention to those dirty spots.

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Hang up to dry and viola, you're good to go.

You can see the method step-by-step in the gallery below...

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Now, there's one question I know you're all dying to ask... 'Can't I just go and buy new laces for like 30 cents instead?'

Well YES BELINDA, you could. But you shouldn't, because that would be lazy.

Don't give up on your laces just yet, OK? They've still got some life to live.