Parents Meet leo stinks - help!

[e'smum]

So my cute lil' 9 yo gymmie was super stinky after our meet this past Friday. I walked into my room where she was hanging out watching her ipad (and still in full leo attire) and couldn't figure out what the smell was.... So I made her immediately get up and shower and put her uniform in the wash. Everything else washed up fine - jacket, pants, the little leo underliner they wear. Her meet leo? Still stinks. I've washed it twice, on hand wash, in cool water and I put it inside out in a pillow case. The 2nd time spot washed the armpits and it still smells like sweaty men at my own gym. I don't know if it's the material or what. If I wash it in warmer water, the water gets a tint to it. This is year one with this leo and it needs to last 2 meet seasons (size wise very easy to do). However, I also don't want it to stink. She has strict instructions to use deodorant for all future meets.

Yuck!
Any suggestions?

 

[Gymmommy71]

You may need to use warm water and Tide. My DD once had a Leo like that - it was mesh fabric on the arms. I had to make her wear that more expensive perscription strength deodorant that's like $8 any time she wore it or the car ride home was intolerable, and even then I still had to do that warm water wash to get the smell out (cause it still smelled up close if you smelled it).

I'm pretty sure it was the fabric on the Leo cause her more recent comps leos don't do that.

 

[QueenBee]

Put the leo in a clean bucket with cold water and vinegar (50/50 combo). Let it sit in there for an hour and then put at least 1 cup of white vinegar into the washing machine when you re-wash the leo. Vinegar really is magic when it comes to removing odors.

Good luck!

 

[mommyof1]

Another option might be a specially formulated sports detergent. One I have used on athletic wear claims it can be used to remove human odors from hunting clothes. Great on yoga wear, but I haven't tried it on gym leotards. It does seem pretty gentle.

I would be very cautious with Tide. I have seen it take the shine off of mystique leos.

Some people swear that spraying vodka in shoes will kill odors. I don't know how safe that is on competition leos whose care instructions require washing in unicorn tears.

 

[e'smum]

"washing in unicorn tears"
that's hilarious and oh, so true!

thanks for all the suggestions. i was thinking it might be this particular leo. you can sort of see it in my profile pic. it's got a tan underliner and i think that is what is holding the stench. it seriously stinks.

 

[mommyof1]

"washing in unicorn tears"
that's hilarious and oh, so true!

I cannot claim credit for that phraseology--it stuck with me from a thread a couple of years ago.

https://www.chalkbucket.com/forums/threads/how-do-you-wash-your-competition-leo.54508/

 

[triplethreat+1]

Put the leo in a clean bucket with cold water and vinegar (50/50 combo). Let it sit in there for an hour and then put at least 1 cup of white vinegar into the washing machine when you re-wash the leo. Vinegar really is magic when it comes to removing odors.

Good luck!

One caution- vinegar may not help if you have hard water, and could make it worse.
Another option is to sprinkle baking powder on it (works better if the fabric is slightly damp). Let it sit for an hour or so, then shake it off and rinse it in cool water. This worked well for my LO's delicate cloth diapers!

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

Vodka is very commonly used in ballet. Those costumes are often very elaborate, see a lot of sweat and are definitely NOT washed in between performances..! We had one male dancer in particular whose costume we had to spray liberally after each wear.

 

[mmarlow]

Happened to my daughter's once. I turned it inside out, laid it on towel on the driveway in the sun. I covered the rest of the leo with towels because I was worried about discoloration. Left the armpit area exposed for aboutique 3-4 hours. Of course that was in May when ithe was warm here....

 

[cadybearsmommy]

Try soaking the armpit areas in some Shout or similar stain remove product for several hours, and then rewash, we've had to do this before.

 

[e'smum]

i'm so scared of ruining the darned thing. i may have used shout on it the last time and handwashed it. it's definitely a progressive smell though. it wasn't like this in the beginning.

 

[GymDad9.9]

I've used Arm and Hammer detergent to wash my daughter's leo. The Arm and Hammer product has baking soda in it, which is typically good against odors.

 

[CuriousCate]

We have used fabric Febreeze (we used the odorless kind) for a "favorite" leo that got wet and then sat in a gym bag for 2 weeks. After I read the Power of Habit, I am a believer in the science of Febreeze as a true odor neutralizer rather than masker! But, yes, also vinegar!

 

[BachFlyer]

As an aside, I think I'll be washing my spectator gear in vodka from now on. And then not drying it. And then sucking the vodka out during dds session.

 

[Mish]

As an aside, I think I'll be washing my spectator gear in vodka from now on. And then not drying it. And then sucking the vodka out during dds session.

Omg yes! this is the best thing I've read in a long time!

 

[beachgirl]

My daughter and her leo stink like onions after meets. It started when she switched to a long sleeved leo for meets when she was 9 years old. The first time I noticed it she walked up after the meet and I was so excited about how she did and I was prepared to say, You did great! but what came out of my mouth instead was You.....STINK! I also, can't get the leo to go back to smelling normal and I've tried everything. It doesn't smell bad after washing, just not fresh. I figure she's not close enough to the judges for them to smell her, so she's okay. She wears deodorant and typically doesn't ever smell, except for at meets. I figure if she looks good meets it doesn't matter if she or her leo smell.

 

[e'smum]

As an aside, I think I'll be washing my spectator gear in vodka from now on. And then not drying it. And then sucking the vodka out during dds session.

hahahahahahahha
hilarious!

 

[Iwannabemargo]

smell is caused by normal skin bacteria breaking down any organic substances on the material. Bacteria love warm and moist.

Things to do :

Mask the smell - perfume, fabric conditioners, some sprays etc fall into this catagory.

Clean off the organics - washing, dry cleaning etc

Kill the bacteria - extreme heat or cold, desiccation

Problems - the material can't be cleaned "normally"

I would use a multi-pronged approach.

I would gently wash in a hand wash solution, and air dry on a hanger.
I would then if the smell has not gone, try extreme cold and dessication. dust smelly bits with baking soda, fold carefully, place in a freezer bag and pop in the freezer for a few hours. Bring up to room temp in the bag, open and then dust off the baking soda.

Then I would store in a drawer with a lavender bag.

Also make sure any bags that its stored in are also clean