The first five minutes of any stain

Blot with a clean white cloth from the outside of the mark inwards. Pressing and rubbing forces the stain deeper into the weave and widens it.

Use white cloth only — coloured cloth can transfer its own dye into a wet stain.

Cold or cool water is the safe default: it dilutes without setting protein stains such as blood, egg or milk.

Oil and grease are the exception. Water will not move them; absorb with a powder first, then emulsify with detergent.

No hot wash, no tumble dryer, no iron until the mark has gone. Heat cross-links proteins and bakes pigment into the fibre, which is what turns a treatable stain into a permanent one.