Image Map

Monday, July 8, 2013

Bleach Pen Jeans


I have seen a few jeans with bleach designs and thought it would be fun to recreate them at home for a lot cheaper. I thought about just using plain ol' bleach, but then I found out about Clorox bleach pens! Genius. The bleach pen is a gel consistency, which makes it harder to mess up your design.

I picked up a pair of shorts from the thrift store, but you may already have a pair of jeans/shorts you are ready to update/don't mind if you mess them up.

You need:
Jeans
Clorox pen
Wax paper
Needle (optional, but helpful)

Lay jeans out and place pieces of wax paper under the area you plan on bleaching. This way the bleach doesn't bleed through the other side. Using the bleach pen, carefully draw your design. I recommend practicing with it on a piece of paper first so you get the feel for it. After, use the needle to straighten out your lines and pop any bubbles that might have formed.

 Tip: Make sure your design has an even layer of bleach, otherwise certain areas will have a stronger color (in the picture above, the bleach isn't as even as it should be, I went over it again with more bleach).

 Now just let the bleach sit for about 1 hour. The bleach will look drier, and you will be able to tell the area you bleached is lighter. If you are using very dark jeans, you may want to leave the bleach on longer. Rinse your jeans in the sink to get off the bleach and then wash them in the machine. Let jeans dry and examine your work! If you want the design to be brighter, simply go over the design again with more bleach.