Would You Wear… Bleached Jeans?

Written by Zephyr on April 13, 2009

Here’s another trend of the moment for you guys to debate. Ultra-distressed, bleach-stained jeans have been a hit ever since they showed up in the Maison Martin Margiela Spring 2008 collection, and the trend remains just as hot as ever.

Plain old bleach-splattered jeans like the ones Nicole Richie wear (boyfriend jeans using the balled-up method)

are a popular choice for spring, but the tie-dyed bleached jean (using the rubber band method) is even trendier and more daring. Psychedelic denim is a look that we saw on the Balmain Spring 2009 runways, and celebs like Gwen Stefani are loving it right now. (Gwen’s jeans in the photo above are made by current/elliott, FYI.)

Personally, I think the jeans Gwen is pictured wearing are cute, and I definitely think they work with her outfit. They’re trashy and grungy looking in a good way, if that makes sense.

Fergie’s look, however, isn’t doing it for me. For some reason the jeans just don’t work as part of that outfit. And I’m still not sure how bleached jeans would work on normal people… they might be a tough trend to pull off for some.

Now I want to get your take on this trend. So what do you think? Would you wear bleached jeans? What about tie-dyed bleached jeans? Do you think they can work in real life, or are they too much of an 80’s throwback for you?














How to Bleach Tie-Dye (balled-up) and stud your jeans:

First take a pair of dark beat up jeans and wrinkled them into a tight ball. Then fill a bucket with water plus bleach (preferably with a top so you keep the smell contained) and dumped the balled up jeans into the bucket. After about one hour you should start to see some bleached results (cheap jeans bleach out faster but really well made dark denim takes a long time to bleach). Once you reached the desired color and pattern rinse them as much a possible to get the smell out, warning the bleached color that is left on the jeans will come out so wash alone. Once dried stud them on the sides with 1/4″ metal studs as desired.

Tie dye using rubber bands and duct tape:

Learning how to tie dye jeans is a great way to make your old pieces of clothing new again. If you have an old pair of jeans hanging in the back of your closet, you should consider tie dyeing them. Tie dye jeans can be a great fashion statement and a fun project if you are new to tie dyeing.

what you will need:

*spray bottle

*rubber gloves

*bleach (I use the lavender scented one so I dont suffocate in the bathroom)

*rubber bands if you want a tie die look

*a couple of hours

Distressing clothes is one of my favorite things to do. I HATE throwing out clothes I don't like any more, so I will usually find something to do with it before it gets sent to goodwill. Bleaching jeans or using bleach as tie dye is a great way to distress your clothes into a new piece with personal style.

Heres what ya need to do:

1. This is one of those projects that's takes very little time to do, but you need a couple of hours at least to do it. So make sure you have time to check on your bleaching. First, wet the clothes.

2. Lay out whatever you want to bleach on a flat surface. (I use my bathtub)

3. Spray bleach on jeans. Adjust the nozzle on your spray bottle for different types of sprays, play around with it and see what you like. If your tie dyeing a dress for ex. gather small pieces of fabric and tie it with a rubber band. Spray bleach on gathered section.

4. It is best to do layers of bleach i.e spray the garments, read some blogs, or eat a snack, then come back and spray some more. I usually do this for about 4 hours.

5. When you have reached your desired look rinse the garment and hang dry for a little bit or until its dry. Then just throw it in the wash.

Creating Unique Tie Dye Patterns

You can create a batik tie dye effect if you duct tape spots of the jeans that you do not want dyed. This will help you make your tie dye patterns seem even more intricate. You can duct tape zigzag patterns or draw shapes like roses or rainbows.