Do you LOVE our therapy putty, but HATE when it gets stuck to something it’s not supposed to? We do, too – so we’ve compiled a list of activities for removing putty from clothing and hair. These ideas were submitted from occupational therapists on the Yahoo Groups’ OT-peds listserv and the American Occupational Therapy Association’s school listserv. Thank you for these useful ideas.

Compiled by Deanna Iris Sava, MS, OTR/L of OT Exchange

1. WD-40 works well to get putty out of cloth fibers. Test a small area of your carpet first.
2. Believe it or not, I have found the peanut butter has worked to remove putty from some fabrics. (I’ve used it on small spots on my car seats). Just take a small amount and rub it into the putty that is embedded into the fabric and it loosens up. Then wash the bag to remove the peanut butter. Just one word of caution – don’t automatically dry the shirt in the dryer until you’re sure the putty is out. Air-dry it first. Then if you need to, you can repeat the procedure. Using an automatic dryer before the stain is completely out almost always permanently sets the stain.
3. Using peanut butter works especially well with hair. I discovered it once when a friend of my son’s got a wad of it stuck in the back of her head. A tablespoon of peanut butter massaged into her hair got it out right away.
4. If the putty stain is small and you catch it right away (before it goes through the wash), use a small scrub brush and dish detergent. Make sure you scrub WITH the grain of the fabric.
5. Have you tried freezing the shirt to see if the putty becomes brittle and easier to manage? Putty is known for oozing through woven material.
6. Use ice to harden the putty and scrape it away, and then spray on upholstery cleaner with a brush. Use Woolite for the remaining stain.
7. This is how I get small spots of therapy putty out of clothing. Take the whole wad of putty and press it hard on the putty on the shirt. Keep doing this over and over and over. The putty should stick to itself and come off a little at a time.
8. I have used the putty pressed into the spot over and over and then spot cleaned with rubbing alcohol for the last stain.
9. Use Goo-Gone and elbow grease for cleaning up putty!
10. Get putty out of hair by using vegetable oil or peanut butter, then a couple of good shampoos.
11. Try Goof Off (you can find it at Home Depot) – it’s made to get rid of paint spots. Rub it into the putty stain and wash in hot water. The stain should come out.