How to Get Almond Oil Out of Clothes and Sheets

You wake up to a translucent patch on the pillowcase, or notice a shadow on a sleeve where body oil met cotton. Almond oil is a plain plant oil, and plain oils leave grease-type marks on fabric, the same way a dab of salad dressing does. The good news is that this kind of mark is among the more cooperative ones, provided you work in the right order.

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What you are actually removing

Our oil is faintly golden and unscented beyond a soft nutty note, so a fresh spot usually shows as a darker, slightly see-through patch, not a bright stain. That is no promise that it will wash out unaided. Oil does not dissolve in water, which is why the mark survives a rinse and why the fix is built around soaking up the oil and then using a detergent that can carry it away. We would not claim our oil will leave no trace, and a patch that has been through a hot dryer is much harder than one caught in the morning.

A method for washable cotton, linen and synthetics

This follows the grease-stain guidance from the University of Georgia Extension textiles team, applied to a plant oil, and it is worth reading the care label before you begin.

Blot, do not rub. Lay the fabric flat and press a paper towel on the spot to lift what is still on the surface. Rubbing pushes the oil further into the weave.
Absorb. UGA's first step is talcum powder to take up as much grease as possible, then a thorough brushing. Cornstarch from the kitchen works on the same principle, since it is a fine powder that soaks up oil. Give it a few minutes and brush it off.
Pretreat. UGA calls for a commercial pre-wash spot and stain remover. Its alternative is diluted hand dishwashing liquid worked into the spot, since dish detergent is made to cut grease.
Wash hot. Launder in the hottest water the fabric can stand, with a heavy-duty liquid detergent. UGA notes that a second treatment may be needed if a trace remains.
Look before you dry. Hold the spot to the light while the fabric is damp. If you can still see a shadow, treat it again. Heat from a dryer or iron is easy to apply and hard to undo, which is our reasoning for checking first.

Test any product on an unseen corner first, as UGA's own cautions say, and never use a method the care label prohibits.

Sheets and towels after a lot of oil

A little body oil on a pillowcase is a laundry matter. A heavy soaking is different, and an insurance loss-control article on massage oils describes a business fire that began when oil-soaked sheets went into a dryer. Its advice is to wash oiled linens at 104 F or hotter, dry on low heat below 125 F, and keep stacks small so they can cool. That guidance is aimed at massage practices, but it is a good reason to treat a heavily oiled sheet with respect. Our almond oil massage post walks through it in more detail.

When to call a professional

Silk, wool, leather, suede and anything labeled dry-clean-only should go to a dry cleaner, ideally as soon as you notice the mark, and you should tell them what the oil was. The same goes for a large patch on upholstery or a mattress, where you cannot launder the whole piece. For those, blot, dust the spot with talc or cornstarch to absorb what you can, and then let a cleaner take it from there. If it was a leather bag or sofa that took the oil, our post on almond oil and leather explains what conservators say.

Keeping the oil on you and off the linen

Most stains come from putting on too much and dressing too soon. Our damp-skin method applies the oil to skin that is still damp from the shower, which spreads it thin and lets it settle. After that, give it ten minutes before you pull on pajamas, and wear or lie on older cotton you do not mind. For a full-body treatment, our head-to-toe body oil guide is the place to start.

With a bit of powder, a pretreatment and a warm wash, most oil marks come out of washable fabric, and the few that do not usually belong to the delicate pieces that a dry cleaner handles best.