Bleaching works best on fabrics like denim, cotton, rayon, linen and polyester. The pants should also be of fairly good quality, as bleaching can disintegrate thin or weak fabrics. Before you decide to bleach your favorite pair of jeans, it may be a good idea to test the bleaching process out with an older pair first. Good quality, second-hand jeans from a thrift store are perfect for this. Just make sure that the pants you are bleaching have no holes or tears, as the bleach can eat away at the edges and cause them to widen.
If you want them bleached evenly, you don’t need to do anything, but if you want to create a tie dye effect, you will need to ball the pants up in your hands, then use two large rubber bands to hold the pants in the ball shape. [1] X Research source
You may also want to change into an old pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, as any splashes could bleach your clothing.
Mix the solution in a large plastic tub or basin, or a sink that you will not be using for several hours. New, fresh bleach will work better than old bleach and will be more effective when mixed with warm water, rather than cold. The volume of solution does not matter as long as there is enough to completely submerge the pants.
Bleach will process better on damp material, so it is a good idea to rinse the jeans in some warm water to dampen them before placing them in the bleach solution.
If you just want to lighten the pants very slightly, you may only need to soak them for under an hour. On the other hand, if you wish to lighten very dark jeans, it may take several hour or overnight. Check on the pants every hour or so to see if they’ve reached the desired level of bleaching. Keep in mind that they will be a shade or two once they’re dry.
Make sure to put the pants in the washing machine on their own, otherwise the excess bleach could stain your other clothes! If you went with the tie dye option, remember to remove the rubber bands before rinsing.
If you only want to bleach one side of the jeans, stuff the legs full of balled-up newspaper to prevent the bleach from soaking through.
Dip a paint brush into the bleach solution and, wearing latex gloves, flick the bristles backwards onto the pants to create a cool splatter effect with the bleach. Just be very careful to flick the bleach onto the pants and not onto your face. Dip a sponge into the bleach mixture and dab it onto specific areas of the pants. Try dabbing it along the seams, around the pockets and along the belt line for a designer effect. Use a bleach pen to draw more intricate designs onto the pants .
