DIY Denim Bleaching For A Tie Dye Effect

After my failed attempts at securing a Shibori masterclass during several trips to Japan, I have been dreaming about it since. It is an ancient Japanese tie dying method that requires hand crafting skills and hard labour that can't cater to tech age fast living, it's nowhere close to fast fashion AT ALL and that's a good thing!

This is a fast and easy version that picks up on the spirit of Shibori, to never quit dedicating ourselves to lifelong creative learning, to prioritise delayed gratification  over instant gratification. To master one area is so much better than being a Jack of all trades, it makes sure we maximise our contributions in a specific area. 

With full honour towards Shibori creators and humbleness in my heart, knowing this is nowhere near the mastery involved, that doesn't mean we can't capture the essence of it, here goes everything! 

What you need 

A pair of gloves 

A bag of rubber bands

A bucket 

Jeans 

Clothing bleach 

1. Tie your jeans with rubber bands, the more bunches you have, the more intricate the design will be, if you want more of a base colour, do more bunches. 

2. Mix 1:1 bleach to water solution in the bucket, make sure your space is well ventilated. Wear gloves because bleach can damage your hands, some people are allergic to it as well. 

3. Dump your jeans in and forget-about-it 

4. Check in after 45 mins, flip your jeans like an egg if it floated up 

It took me about 45 mins to get to this colour below. 

The final product after 2 hours is this colour below. 

It gets much lighter after washing, so take it out after 1 hour if you still want the base to be dark. 

5. Take it out, wring it and machine wash by itself 

6. Make your ooo la la jeans the focal point, create an outfit out of it. This is so you absorb the vibes of your creativity throughout the day. Tie dye goes really well with bohemian chic elements like flowery shirts, fringed items like my shoes. Match it with a brightly structured bag to give it a modern 2020 edge. 

What's inside you always matter more than the way you look, it's that self care includes making sure the things we put on ourselves work for us, sorting out personal style is a journey to self discovery as well.

I matched it with this top as my no. 2 out of 5 preppy ironic look, which I describe in more detail on my Instagram

Preppy ironic look no. 1 - The Unicorn is here, check it out! 

Eshet chayil, God is a She. 

Min 

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