This is the summer of tie dye, y’all! If you enter any clothing store, or browse one online, you won’t be able to avoid seeing tie dyed pajama sets, swim cover ups, t-shirts and even leggings and sports bras for your workout! It is the trend of the moment and the easiest way to achieve it comes from a simple household item you probably have in your laundry room right now: BLEACH. Bleach creates an awesome reverse tie dye effect on cotton fabrics that is cute and crazy easy, no dye required. Here is what you need to make Reverse Tie Dye Shirts:
Supplies needed to make your own Reverse Tie Dye Shirts
100% cotton colored shirts (we used purple and red)
Rubber bands
Bleach
Squirt bottle
How to make your own Reverse Tie Dye Shirts
Step 1: Twist sections of your shirt, and secure with rubber bands (reference this post for step pictures).
Step 2: Add bleach to the squirt bottle, and place your shirts in the sink or bath.
Step 3: Squirt the shirts with bleach. You will see them start to change after a few seconds. Continue applying the bleach according to your preference. Flip the shirts (gloves are recommended) and apply bleach to the other side.
Step 4: Let the shirts sit for a few minutes, or until you are happy with the amount of change. Remove the rubber bands, then rinse thoroughly.
Step 5: Wash and dry the shirts.
That’s it! Now you can be in on the tie dye trend without breaking the bank. You might even have an old t-shirt in your drawer at this moment that you could squirt with some bleach and give it an adorable makeover! And while we recommend using 100% cotton fabrics for best results, we also had some success with mixed fabrics, as long as the cotton content was above 60%.
Happy Making!
xo, Liz & Sam