chambray creations

hello!

reading about all the creativity chloe's been feeling, i decided to post a little something i did over the weekend~ 

ombre bleaching!

start with a denim or chambray shirt; really, anything works but i find the effect on denim to be absolutely charming. i found a shirt at forever21 for $15, and also an old denim vest at a thrift store for under ten dollars. you can also use this effect to spice up old cutoff shorts or tanks that need a new take!

before: ordinary

now, dilute a few cups of bleach in a bucket of water. i didn't use any specific ratio, but i'd start with not much bleach, because if it's too concentrated it'll eat holes in your shirt! you can always add more bleach or just be patient.

now here's where you get to be creative. dip the sleeves, dip the collar, dip the torso, do whatever! i decided to create a gradient from dark to light-they call it an ombre, and you can do it with your hair too! but anyways.

this one went for $39-you can do it at home for a fraction of that!

those shorts might have been a bore once, but not anymore!

ombre hair

i let the bottom half of the shirt and cuffs soak until they were significantly lighter, then slowly pulled more and more of the shirt out of the bleach, leaving the shirt alone for fifteen to twenty minutes each time to let the bleach do its work. 

when you're satisfied with your shirt, put it straight in the washing machine! be careful not to drip on anything, and wash it by itself so you don't bleach out the rest of your clothes. hang to dry and enjoy! here's how mine turned out:

bonus pic: cat and kelly!