DIY BLEACH TIE DYE TUTORIAL: QUICK AND EASY REVERSE TIE DYE SHREDDED SKINNY JEANS

Tie dye is a quick and easy way to update your wardrobe, and I LOVE it! But what if you want to update and refashion a black garment? Bleach is your new best friend.

After my tie-dye spree a few weeks ago… >>UPDATE YOUR WARDROBE IN 1 HOUR WITH A QUICK AND EASY TIE-DYE DIY PROJECT<<… I have been wearing my flower-child inspired tie dye tees and tops everywhere from the grocery store to the schoolyard and I just LOVE them. They make me feel free-spirited and creative, but it’s not been the sunniest of springs here in the UK and so I decided to add a little of that festival-flair to my jeans too with this great reverse tie-dye using nothing more than good ol’ fashioned bleach. It’s so quick and easy.. and can be done for as little as 29p with Supermarket value bleach! Here’s how you can do it too!

You will need:

• Pair of old jeans/black garments
• Bottle of plain ol’ household bleach
• Wooden spoon or similar to poke and stir/Tongs
• Plastic grocery or bin-bag

STEP #1:

Select your garment for refashioning! I have had these rock-a-licious shredded jeans for a while and love the fit but they were starting to fade in all the wrong places.

TOP TIP: If you need to shred your jeans first, it’s easy as pie! Simply cut lots of little strips into the knees, or thighs, pull at the threads a little then throw them in the washing machine and/or dryer on a higher heat setting

Next, prepare for the transformation by balling up in the same way as you would for regular tie-dye. Scrunch up your garment(s) into a ball… I found this worked best when I scrunched sections at a time to make the whole bundle… and then start adding your rubber bands to hold it all together in a cute little parcel like this:

STEP #2:

Now you need to prepare the bleach bath… this isn’t tricky at all. Just fill up the dye-bath with a little warm water, enough to dilute the bleach only slightly, pop on your rubber gloves, and then simply point and squirt in your bleach.

STEP #3:

Pop your little parcel into the dye bath, and swoosh it around a little with your stirrer of choice. I used a wooden spoon as it had already discoloured from cooking previous dye sessions so was happy for it to discolour. If you do not want to also makeover your cooking utensils, make sure that you use metal or plastic implements to stir and swoosh . I like to drizzle a little more bleach on at this point too, in the same way you would if drizzling oil onto bruschetta.

You will need to aggitate the liquid every 15 mins or so, and be sure to flip your garment parcel over a few times like a pancake so that it gets an even coverage of the bleach. Watch as the colour seeps out… it’s fun!

STEP #4:

If you have decided to dye more than one garment, add these in now too…. otherwise go and make a mojito cup of herbal tea while the magic happens.

STEP #5:

Keep an eye on your project every 5 mins or so and flip the parcels over as required. Check the gradient of bleaching and watch as they magically change colour before your very eyes!

STEP #6:

After you are happy with the extent of the bleaching and the colour produced, carefully take out each parcel with tongs or your stirring tool and place on a plastic bag or sheet. Make sure to let the excess bleach-mix drip out a little first right back into the dye bath to save mess.

STEP #7:

Let your parcel(s) rest for a few minutes, then start to carefully take off the rubber bands and prepare to be amazed and start feeling rather impressed with yourself… You should now see that the bleach has taken on the exposed portions of fabric and those scrunched up inside have remained bleach-free creating an awesome tie-dye effect across the fabric.

Responsibly empty out your dye bath and refill with more warm water. Some people put vinegar or salt in at this point to stop the bleaching reaction, I always just dunked mine in fresh clean water and popped them straight in the washer (alone) with no problems.

Gather up all your newly refashioned garments and throw in the washer on a low temperature quick cycle with detergent.

STEP #8:

Tumble dry or hang to dry outside on the washing line to show off to your neighbours how clever you are (optional), and once dry, throw on with your favourite washed-out band tee and some chunky heeled sandals.

Originally published at dollysdisco.blogspot.com on June 1, 2015.