How do I get paint out of clothes?

Whether a paint mark comes out depends entirely on whether the paint is water-based or oil-based, and on whether it is still wet.

Difficulty: beginner
Time: 25 min
Read: 3 min
Safety: caution

Short answer

Wet emulsion rinses out under cold water with washing-up liquid. Wet gloss needs white spirit. Once either has dried, softening it with acetone or brush cleaner and picking it out is the only route, and results are poor. Deal with it now, not later.

Paint is designed to form a permanent film on the surface it lands on, and cloth is a very good surface for it. The window in which a paint mark is easily removed is measured in minutes for water-based paint and perhaps an hour for oil-based. After that you are dissolving a cured polymer rather than washing off a liquid.

Safety

White spirit and brush cleaner are flammable and their vapour irritates the lungs. Work with a window open, away from any flame or heat source, and wear gloves. Rags soaked in white spirit can heat up as they dry: lay them flat outdoors to dry before disposing of them, never leave them screwed up in a bin. Never combine any solvent with bleach.

What you'll need

Cold running water
Washing-up liquid
White spirit or brush cleaner, for oil-based paint (optional)
A blunt knife

Step by step

Work out which paint it is.Emulsion, acrylic and most modern trim paints are water-based and the tin says so. Traditional gloss, undercoat and some floor paints are oil-based and the tin will mention white spirit for cleaning.
Act immediately.The difference between two minutes and two hours is the difference between rinsing it out and never removing it. Nothing else about this job matters as much.
Scrape off any thickness first.A blunt knife under the blob, lifting rather than smearing. Getting the bulk off means the solvent only has to deal with what is in the weave.
Rinse water-based paint under a cold tap.From the back of the fabric, with washing-up liquid worked in. Cold, because warm water helps the paint film cure.
Use white spirit on wet oil-based paint.Onto a cloth, dabbed from the back of the fabric onto a clean pad below. Ventilate the room and keep it away from any flame.
Soften dried paint before attempting anything.Acetone or a proprietary brush cleaner, left on the mark for several minutes. Then work the softened film out with a stiff brush or a fingernail.
Rinse and wash thoroughly.Solvent left in fabric is both flammable and an irritant against skin. A full wash with detergent afterwards is essential.
Judge whether it is worth continuing.Dried emulsion on a knitted garment usually takes the fibre with it when it finally comes free. Decorating clothes exist for a reason.

Tips

Keep a set of clothes purely for decorating. It is a far better solution than any stain removal method.
Hairspray on a small dried emulsion spot sometimes works — it contains alcohol and a softening agent — but test on a seam first.
A dried gloss spot on a smooth cotton shirt can sometimes be pared off flat with a very sharp blade held almost parallel to the fabric. It is a last resort and it can cut the cloth.

Common mistakes

Leaving it until after the decorating is finished — Water-based paint is fully cured within an hour or two. A mark that would have rinsed out in ten seconds becomes a plastic film welded into the weave.
Putting white spirit rags straight into a bin — Oil-based solvent rags can self-heat as they oxidise. Lay them out flat outdoors until dry before disposing of them.

If it doesn't work

Dried emulsion that will not soften

Cause: The film has fully cured — Fix: Soak in warm water with washing-up liquid for an hour to swell it, then work at it with a brush. Expect partial success at best.

Colour lifted from the garment where the solvent was used

Cause: The solvent dissolved the fabric dye as well as the paint — Fix: Stop and rinse. Test on a hidden seam before using solvent on anything coloured.

Paint spread into a wider stain

Cause: Rubbing rather than blotting onto a pad behind — Fix: Work from the outside of the mark inwards with clean cloth behind, changing the cloth constantly.

Questions people ask

Does emulsion come out of carpet?

Wet emulsion, yes — cold water, washing-up liquid and patient blotting. Dried emulsion in carpet pile usually has to be cut out fibre by fibre with scissors, taking the tips off the pile.

Can I put solvent-treated clothes straight in the machine?

Rinse them thoroughly by hand first. Solvent residue in a drum is both a fire risk and a way to transfer the smell to the next four loads.