Life Hack: How to remove lily pollen stains from fabric

"Advice from Persil is to shake the fabric to remove the pollen - it is dust, after all."

Lilies are a beautiful addition to your home but can cause problems

A big, beautiful bunch of lilies I had for a few weeks on the kitchen table really added to the room and gave it a summery look and a fragrant aroma, but they left something a bit less pleasant behind. On the tablecloth were the telltale orange marks of fallen pollen, a notoriously tricky stain to remove from all sorts of fabric.

Normally I cut out the stamen once the flowers open but sometimes they open and allow pollen to fall before I get a chance (and sometimes I just forget, we’re all human). The best way to cut the stems out is to do so over the kitchen sink. Hold the flower and use scissors to snip out the stamen. Don’t do it while they’re in a vase near anything they can stain, Murphy’s Law dictates they will definitely land on a white t-shirt. Wrap it in tissue carefully and dispose of it - lily pollen can be toxic for some pets so if you share your home with a cat, in particular, make sure they can’t find it and ingest it.