How do I get the smell of smoke out of a coat without ruining it?

Febreeze might do the trick.

Wait until summer and hang it outside to, as my Mother used to put it, “blow the stink off it.” It’s not just a colorful idiom; UV radiation from direct sunlight for extended periods will kill the mold and bacteria which create stinky byproducts, and the wind will gradually blow through the fibres, pulling away the smoke particles causing the smell.

Pack it with charcoal for a few days. The carbon will absorb the smoke odor.

I always just air it out. Works fine.

Steam cleaning might help, but I find that hanging clothing up in a very ventilated area or a room with a fan usually takes care of the smell within a day.

Soak it for an hour in a bucketful of cold water to which you have added some vinegar, then let it dry outside. Vinegar is awesome for getting rid of smoke smells.

I wouldn’t use vinegar. Smoke smell usually comes from a sticky type of resin left behind from the smoke and vinegar isn’t going to lift that.

I would use baking soda. Dissolve baking soda in cold water and lay the coat in it to soak overnight, give it a gentle push around in the tub every now and then. Then, rinse the coat well and wash as directed. If that doesn’t work, try citric acid in the water the next wash.

According to about.com, you should be able to remove the smoke odors during a simple wash cycle, or in your case, by hand washing. http://video.about.com/laundry/Remove-Smoke-Odors.htm

I looked at several sites, and they all say you can remove smoke smell by simply washing. But they also mentioned that the smoke smell comes from the tar in the cigarette that is NOT so easy to remove. One site recommended vinegar, another recommended baking soda worked into the fabric dry, left to sit for a day, and then shaken out. Many sites recommended airing the item out in fresh air, using Febreze, and another recommended using both vinegar and baking soda together!

Or you could just take the coat to a dry cleaner (don’t forget that dry cleaners also have laundry facilities). Explain your problem, and ask them to launder it according to the directions.

Handwash with cold water and as much vodka as you would use washing liquid.

Handwash with some Woolite and lay it carefully positioned on a thick towel on your bed to dry.

With most of my clothes, hanging on top of a warm radiator works, just lay it on top and leave it there for half a day.. :)

Febreeze it generously and let it air dry outside for a whole day.

This worked for the inside of an automobile by spraying everything with Febreeze and turning on the cars heater for about 20 minutes, so it should do the same for your coat/jacket.

I use febreze, then hang it outside for a full day, then bring it in and spray it with febreze again. Repeat depending on how strong the smoke smell is. I did this with a jacket I bought my husband from a yard sale and it worked. I also mixed about a teaspoon of Downy (April Fresh) with about 1½ cups of water in a spray bottle and sprayed it with that too.

Put it in an airlock and expose it to vacuum overnight to let it outgas. Just make sure that side of your ship is facing away from the sun, or the unfiltered sunlight will discolor the fabric.

@HungryGuy you mean if the coat is brown?

Summer or not, hang it or drape it over a patio chair outside for a day. This worked for my fleece jacket after a long car trip with smokers and stinky dogs.

Another option: I haven’t found Febreze to work as well as Ozium for removing odors from fabric. Spray the inside of the coat and hang in a ventilated area.

Hang it in the sun on a clothes line, unless its red in which case, clothes line in the shade.