On my YouTube channel I filmed myself one day while I was preparing to list on my Etsy site and I removed a sticker from a 1950’s paper dress pattern. Since then I’ve been inundated with direct messages asking me what was that “stuff” I used. People want to know how to remove price stickers without damaging paper, wood, paint, cardboard, and glass without damaging the surface.
Of all the topic I’ve thought to write about on this blog, I didn’t realize that you guys needed this information. Had I known I would have shared my secret sooner. Because it’s really not a secret.
Goodwill Price Stickers Are the Worst
I have to laugh at how many people comment about how aweful Goodwill stickers are to remove. They do seem to be extra sticky and they make the dreaded “X” cut in them to prevent people from peeling the stickers in the store to try to get a better price.
These stickers don’t want to come off of glass, plastic, or wood let alone paper. Even running them under hot water for a few minutes doesn’t seem to do the trick like with most price tags. Goodwill price tags are their for the long haul.
Don’t even get me started on their new policy of covering the back stamp with the price tag. It’s like they don’t understand if that lovely white pitcher is the right manufacturer I will give you more money.
It seem like those super sticky price tags are becoming the norm in most retail stores these days, but even garage sale price tags if stuck to a delicate surface can be the pits.
Like the cup below. The last thing I want to subject this cup to is a scalding hot water bath to try to remove that price tag. I usually like to give these a gentle was so that I don’t lose any more of the design on the piece.
The other vintage find I worry about removing labels from are old books. Sometimes they have a price tag on the first page of the book or in some cases the library that had the old book has an old card catalog card holder inside. Or that rare Little Golden book that has a Dora sticker on the cover. If you’re a seller then you know that can diminish the value of your books.
I Found What Works A Long Time Ago
My first real job out of high school was working in an office for one of the cheapest bosses you have ever met. I have not in any time since that job come across ANYONE who was more of a skinflint. Some have come close but all fell short.
This boss loved to give us impossible money saving chores. Once he brought me a stack of envelopes that had been stamped but for some reason I can’t remember weren’t going to be used. He asked me to find a way to remove the self adhesive stamps so they could be used on other pieces of mail.
What? Really?
Yes, really. He said to cut them off an glue them to new envelopes if I had to. That was when I discovered Un-Du label remover. It was billed as able to remove a label and leave the self adhesive glue sticky. And bonus it didn’t damage the original surface. The cost of a bottle was completely justified to the boss when he realized we could reuse old file folders by removing the seven layers of old labels.
When I started my resale business somewhere in the back of mind I remebered Un-Du and when I came across a price tag on an old book dustjacket I decided to invest in a bottle.
Un-Du was not only as awesome as I remember it had been improved. The one I remembered using had a noxious odor and the new low VOC Un-Du doesn’t and it works just as well as the original.
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Here’s How to Remove Price Stickers
Removing price stickers even from paper couldn’t be easier. I recently purchased a 1960’s wedding dress pattern that I want to list on my Etsy site. Before I resell anything I removed all stickers from them, including the patterns.
Step 1:
The first step is to drop a few drops on the offending label. The liquid comes out quickly so you don’t need to squeeze the bottle hard, if at all. Once you do that replace the cap.
Step 2:
After a second the liquid should have soaked in and started the magic. Using the scraper attached to the bottle find an edge that is ready to come up and gentle slide the scraper under the price tag.
It should lift away without much effort.
You can see the liquid leaves a mark but don’t worry it’s not permanent.
Last Step:
Wait for the surface to dry. As you can see in the image above the liquid completely evaporated and didn’t leave any trace of itself behind. The Un-Du also didn’t damage the paper which is perfect! Now I can list it on Etsy.
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Works on All Surfaces
You might not have necessarily been wondering how to remove price stickers from paper. Maybe you wanted to remove stickers from a painted surface.
Yep it works on paint too.
What about on a ceramic or glass surface?
Yep, Un-Du has you covered there as well.
And what about those dreaded Goodwill price stickers?
I removed one from a paper backing just to prove it works on those stubborn stickers too!
All gone and no damage to the paper at all. Even with the dreaded “X” the sticker came off intact.
What If There’s Adhesive Residue Left Behind?
Occassionall (not often) some of the stickers come off but leave a little of their adhesive behind, like the Hobby Lobby sticker on the painted surface.
As you can see there are adhesive boogers left behind. Because the Un-Du makes the adhesive sticky again so you can reuse the label or stamp you removed if you leave these boogers behind they will be very sticky.
All I do is while the adhesive is still wet I use a paper towel to wipe the adhesive away.
I Hope This Helps
I hope this helps clear up the mystery of what that “stuff” was in my video and helps you get rid of those unwanted stickers. Now you can pick up those vintage books even if there’s a label stuck to the pages or inside cover of the book without worrying about damage.
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