Fastest way to remove thrift store smell from a jacket?

Fastest safe fix: hang the jacket on a sturdy hanger, turn it inside out, and lightly mist it with a 50/50 mix of cheap vodka and water or a 1:3 white vinegar to water mix. Do a quick patch test inside the hem first, then use a very fine mist from about 12 inches away so you dampen, not wet, both the lining and the underarm/collar areas. Follow with a garment steamer held 2–3 inches away, moving continuously so you warm the fibers without dripping; a few slow passes inside and out helps release musty compounds. Hang it in strong airflow for a couple of hours, ideally near an open window with a fan on it; 15–20 minutes of indirect sun can speed things up, but avoid prolonged direct sun on wool. In most cases the smell drops dramatically within 2–4 hours with this combo.

No steamer? Hang it in a steamy bathroom for 10 minutes, then move it to a fan to dry, and use an unscented fabric refresher if you have one. If a trace of odor lingers, park the jacket on a hanger in a breathable garment bag or a large bin with an open bowl of baking soda or activated charcoal nearby for a few hours while air circulates. Avoid soaking, washing, or any heat cycle in the dryer; agitation and heat are what shrink wool and can water-spot acetate or rayon linings. Brush the exterior with a clothes brush after drying to lift the nap and finish freshening the fabric.

Back when we kept prints in shoeboxes and burned mix CDs, we fixed smells with air and patience. Put the jacket on a wide hanger, turn it inside-out, and hang it outside in the shade where there's a breeze. Give the lining a very light vinegar-and-water mist if you like, then let it evaporate.

Ten minutes of gentle steaming from a little distance helps finish it off. Skip direct sun and dryers if you want the fit to stay the same.

Hang it outside, 😬 shady breeze, light vodka spritz, don't drown the lining.

Wind, shade, vodka mist; not rocket surgery.

Dry cleaner wanted the price of a decent lunch to "freshen" mine, which is ridiculous for five minutes of work. I'm not paying a cover charge for my own jacket to smell less like grandma's closet.

What worked fast and cheap: outside in the shade, inside-out, fan blasting at it. I did a light spray of bargain vodka on the lining and underarms, nothing on the wool shell, and let it evaporate. Then a quick pass with a steamer held about a foot away just to warm the fibers. Smell dropped by like 90 percent in an hour. If a trace lingers, I hang it by an open window overnight with a bowl of activated charcoal nearby. Pro tip before you commit: test your spray on an inside seam to make sure it doesn't spot.

Steam up the bathroom for a few minutes, hang the jacket just outside the shower splash zone, then hit the lining with a light vodka spritz and a box fan. You get hospital-grade de-funk in under an hour without shrinking anything.

Co-parenting taught me speed cleaning between kid pickups. Hang it on a hanger by an open window, inside-out, and lightly mist the lining with cheap vodka; wave a fan at it for 20 minutes. If it still whispers attic, give it a short pass with a steamer from a foot away.

People nuke these with perfume, vinegar baths, or dryer heat and then wonder why the wool puckers or the stink mutates. Baking soda smeared straight on wool is gritty and leaves residue. Long sun baths fade and can dry out fibers. Steaming too close will spit water and leave rings on the shell. Ozone gizmos can yellow synthetics in linings.

Fastest low-risk: hang it in open air shade, turn it inside-out, and get airflow on it. Light mist a 50/50 vodka-water mix on the lining only, not the wool, and don't soak. Let it flash off 30–60 minutes, then a quick, distant steam pass if needed, 12 inches away, keep it moving. If a ghost of odor remains, park it overnight near an activated charcoal bag, not touching.