How to Get Fingernail Polish Out of Carpet

Learn how to remove nail polish from your carpet!

If you’ve just spilled nail polish on your carpet and are in a frenzy, don’t worry. Plenty of people have been in your shoes before. Your carpet, we’re happy to report, is salvageable, and we can help you remove nail polish from carpets.

While your bright colored nail polish quickly soaks into the carpet, it’s important to act before it dries. Luckily, there are plenty of products that you can find in your bathroom and around your house that can do the trick!

In this article, we’ll learn how to get nail polish out of carpets and make sure that that unseemly splotch on your carpet goes away!

Remove Nail Polish from Carpet with these Products

Before you embark on your task, it’s important to learn what kinds of products work in successfully removing nail polish without damaging the carpet. It’s not a foolproof plan, however, so you should always test your materials on an inconspicuous spot on the carpet first. That way, if your product does damage your carpet, you haven’t used it in large quantities.

Here are some common household items that will help you remove nail polish from carpets.

1) Non-Acetone Nail Polish Remover. Nail polish remover works great, as long as it contains no acetone which will discolor your carpet if used.

2) Rubbing Alcohol or Hairspray. Products that contain alcohol does a good job in dissolving the nail polish from the carpet.

3) Carpet Stain Remover. It might be a more niche product to have in the house, but if you have it it's finally time for it to do its job!

4) Hydrogen Peroxide. Sometimes strong hydrogen peroxide solutions will discolor carpets similar to bleach, so make sure you only use a light solution.

5) Window Cleaning Solutions. It might seem odd but window cleaner does wonder in breaking down the nail polish in your carpet.

How to Remove Nail Polish from Carpet, Step-by-step

Now let’s go over exactly how to use your emergency carpet cleaner to remove nail polish from carpets!

1) Manually remove as much as possible. Scoop up as much of the wet nail polish as you can with just your hands and fingers so that it’s less work for the cleaning products.

2) Dab the stain. Use a clean towel to lightly dab the stain until no more color is coming off of the spot. Make sure to tread lightly so you do not rub the stain deeper into the carpet.

3) Test your products. Whatever products you’ve found around the house, it’s important to test it on an inconspicuous area before going to town on the actual stain. That way, if your product does damage the carpet, you find out early and stop yourself from creating a permanent discoloring in the middle of your carpet.

4) Use your products. Pour a small amount of your cleaning product onto a clean cloth and blot out the nail polish stain. Only blot the stain and try not to scrub at all so you don’t inadvertently spread the wet stain. Do this until you don’t think any more color is coming off.

5) Wash the spot with warm water. Get a sponge and fill a bowl with warm water and a bit of dishwashing liquid. Scrub the carpet vigorously and rinse regularly. Do this until all of your product is out of the carpet.

6) Wash again and dry. When all product is out, wash the spot again with a new bowl of warm water. Then, soak the excess water up with paper towels and dry the area with a fan. If you don’t have a fan, put a heavy object on top of your paper towels and wait an hour.

Now you’re done learning how to get nail polish out of carpets! Your stain should at least be much harder to spot than before!

Final Thoughts on Removing Fingernail Polish from Your Carpets

By the time you’re done with this process, you should have saved your carpet from an unseemly splotch. Now that you know how to remove nail polish from carpets, there’s no need to cry over spilled nail polish. Simply grab your easiest cleaning product and quickly work to remove the spill!

Thanks for reading and we hope you get that stain out quickly and completely!