My friend Susan, the hostess of a dinner party I once attended,
astonished us all by her actions when one of the guests spilled
a glass of red wine on the white tablecloth.

She jumped up and
first put a full kettle of water on the stove, then removed
everything from the table, took up the tablecloth, and stretched
the fabric over a pan in the sink.

Once the water was boiling, she
pulled a chair up to the sink, stood on it with the kettle, and
poured the boiling water over the stain from a height of 3 to
4 feet.

This stain removing technique worked like magic!

It isn’t everyone who would be willing to disrupt their dinner
party by removing all the food, plates, and utensils, but I’ve
since learned Susan’s tip works most successfully when the stain
is fresh.

If the stain is dry, try soaking the red wine in white
wine to bleach it out. Finally, cover the stain with a thick
baking soda paste, leave it for a few hours keeping it moist by
spraying it with water from a spray bottle. Wash as normal.