You grab a pen from your vinyl purse, jot down a phone number, and then become distracted while putting the pen away. You miss the opening of the purse and draw a long line down the side. Instead of throwing the purse away, you can try to remove the ink stain using some common household items, even if the stain has been on the purse for days.

Saturate a corner of a dry cloth with rubbing alcohol and dab the stain with the alcohol-soaked portion of the cloth. The area should be wet, but not dripping with alcohol.

Rub the area with a dry corner of the cloth to blend the alcohol into the stain. Rubbing alcohol dissolves ink, so you need to work the rubbing alcohol into the stain completely.

Rinse the area with a cloth soaked in water. It is not necessary to add soap to the wet cloth because the alcohol will do all the stain lifting work. If the stain remains, repeat the process until it disappears.

Apply white toothpaste to the stain. Gels don't work on ink stains. Cover the stain completely with the toothpaste.

Rub the toothpaste into the stain vigorously. Use a grinding motion to work the toothpaste into the ink.

Soak a cloth with water and add a drop of dish soap. Move the cloth in a circular motion over the stain to work the soap and toothpaste combination into a lather. Rinse the surface of the purse with a fresh cloth soaked in water and repeat the steps until the stain is disappears.

Spray the stain directly with hairspray. The type of hairspray doesn't matter; any type will work the ink out of the vinyl. Do not allow the hairspray to dry completely before moving to step 2.

Rub the spot vigorously with a dry cloth. The ink will begin to visibly lift off the fabric.

Soak a cloth with water and add a drop of dish soap. Use the cloth to remove the stickiness of the hairspray. If the stain remains, repeat the steps until the stain is removed.