Its been a long time, I know I am slipping on my post! But please forgive me, I have been busy enjoying my summer :-) I come to you on this Saturday morning to share my new Kellzism (random things I do when I'm bored)...For the past few months, I have been looking for a crazy pair of distressed jeans , and never could find a pair to my liking(or for my pockets)! If you are unsure of what Distressed jeans are, They kinda look like this
Well there is no Kinda, this is how they look, lol! I would always see them, But I needed more! I like a little more craziness in my life, so Guess what, I started investigating how I can make my own!
I started looking at pinterest and YouTube video's on how I can make this happen, But the thing is with me, I get bored so if it looked to difficult, or was a boring video, I would just watch another one! So I watched over 10 videos and although they had similarities, they were all kinda different as far as the individual methods they used to make the process successful! FRUSTRATING! So what did I have to do, Wing it! So let's get started on how I did mine!
I started off with a regular dark wash jean from old navy I thrifted. ( I was not spending tons of money on jeans to practice on) These are the exact jeans I bought
I wanted a skinny jean so I can wear a heel and give them a sexy edgy affect!
So I gathered my items and got started!
Items needed
Bleach
a small bucket
Large thick rubber bands
scissors
Rubber Gloves
Box Cutter (optional)
First thing I did was fold the jeans in half and make slits in them. I only did the front of my jeans, But if you want to do the back, feel free! Their yours, be original! I made different size slits from the top thigh all the way to my ankle, just to add some variety to the wholes in my jean! Remember to pull the pockets out first. You jean should look similar to this
Pretty Simple!!!
After your slits are completed wherever you want them on your jeans, Now its time to add the rubber bands! I used the twisting technique. I started from the bottom and twisted my jean real tight before adding 2 rubber bands. Be original, and add them how you want, and where you want!
It looks crazy, and trust me, I was worried, but hey, it was worth a try! After I made sure all my bands were tight, Now was time for the bleaching! I mixed 2 cups of water and 1 cup of bleach in the small budget, but needed more, so I doubled the solution! WARNING, THIS IS EXTREMELY OVERWHELMING! DO IN A OPEN SPACE, LIKE OUTSIDE!!!!
Dip the the jeans in the solution (wearing gloves) If you want only want a part of the jean bleached, Dip only that specific part, and stop at inch before it goes to the unbleached part because Bleach runs! I only wanted the certain parts of my jean bleached to create a Ombre affect
Now the videos I watched, I noticed that some people were leaving them in hours and even over night! Yea, I'm impatient, so I watched mine ever 15 minutes! I'm so glad I did, I noticed them changing so quickly! I kept checking them until they turned to the color I desired!
Once I seen my color, I removed them from the bleach, and Cut the Rubber bands off, and and rinsed soaked them in Cold water!! Rinsing them over and over again. I actually ran them through the washer on the cold cycle (No detergent) twice! When they came out, I notice they weren't that white bleached look, they were more yellow! Still cute, but I wanted them white!!!! I washed them twice, this time with detergent, and I notice the they were getting white! whooooo whooooo! I was excited! I also noticed that my slits were now shredded holes! Omg, I was in love! I threw my jean in the dryer, and here's the finished product!!!!!
Oh yea!! My jeans were just how I want them, and I only spent 8 bucks!!!!!! I have seen them in stores for over $100.00, I think I'm kind of proud of myself!
I rocked them with a simple white tank, leopard peep toe, my thrifted red clutch and hit the town!
My whole look was under 30 bucks!!! Beauty on a Budget!
Check out these hint below, that may help you achieve that perfect jean just for you!
1. Rinsing your jean with white vinegar after the bleaching process will stop the bleaching immediately, This is strictly optional
2. I read that a cup of regular powder detergent in the bleach solution will prevent the "yellow" look in your jeans, I didn't try this, but it won't hurt anything
3. It's very important to watch your jeans, after about 25 minutes, they were ready to rinse. I tried another pair, just for fun, soaked them for over a hour , and it created hole I didn't ask for!
4. Its very important to be in fresh air, or at least in a wide open area. I decided to do it in my kitchen and became short of breath and smelled bleach for the next 24 hours! So take my advice and DON'T DO IT!
4. The thicker the jean, the better (my opinion) I tried this on a old stretch jean in my closet, and they kind of feel apart. Well, I did bleach them longer, but it still seems like the process was too harsh on the thinner jean!
Well loves, I hope you try this! Let me know how you individualized your jean!!
Love Ya Guys,
Kell Bellz!!!!