How to get musty basement smell out of stuffed animals?

lizobss

I had someone from Craigslist donate over 100 beanie babies to my classroom and I am so excited.  Most of them still have the tags on and they look impeccable.  The only problem is you can tell that they have been stored in the basement.  Any suggestions for how to get that smell out?

punkfiction

wash them?

VinBert

Can you throw them in the dryer with a fabric softener?  On low of course....

punkfiction

i dont get it. we wash and dry stuffed animals all. the. time. 

normal wash. normal dry.

lizobss

I would wash them, but they have the paper tags on them.  The tags would get wet and paper doesn't just dry back to how it was before it got wet like cloth does.

ohwhattheheck

leave them out in the sun for a few hours

punkfiction

right but if the kids in your classroom are going to play with them, youd want to take the tags off anyway. they'll get ruined in the end no matter what.

expecting-n-tx

Set them in the sun and let them bake!

ibbym

ohwhattheheck:

leave them out in the sun for a few hours

ditto!

lizobss

Thanks.  I never thought of putting them in the sun.  I was going to Dryel a few and see how they come out.

 FWIW, the children are going to use them as reading buddies, something to read aloud to, so they aren't going to ruin them and the tag, with the name and poem are usually the biggest draw.

MrsPedersen

Febreeze