Jeans, whatever the color is, are never too old for fashion. Black jeans can be worn with any outfit to give off a trendy vibe. However, a pair of faded black jeans with unique designs look super cool. Although you can buy any faded jeans, why not save the dollars when you can fade them perfectly at home!
Moreover, you can prevent color fading from whole jeans by fading them on purpose. Now the question is how to fade black jeans? You can use sunlight or household items such as lemons, vinegar, or chemicals like bleach. Follow the instruction properly and Bingo! Your jeans will be ready to rock and roll.
‘How to Fade Black Jeans’ With Food Products, Chemicals, and Natural Methods
There are several products and techniques to fade your black jeans, you will know the details from this section.
A. Food Products!
You can lighten your jeans’ color with items from your kitchen! Since they are consumable products, they are eco-friendly as well as safe for your jean’s fiber.
1. Lemon
Lemons contain citric acid which is a natural oxidizing agent that helps to fade any color. Also, when placed in sunlight, the fading process accelerates quite a bit. To work with this product, first, soak your jeans so that they are doused and dripping, and then wring out the water thoroughly.
Fill a bucket or bathtub with a few inches of concentrated lemon juice and toss your wrung-wet jeans in it. Make sure that every inch of the pants is soaked with lemon juice. Keep checking the fading amount from time to time since it will take a few hours. In the end, rinse the jeans properly and dry them in the sunlight.
2. Coffee
Coffee can show acidic properties and fade colors from dark fabrics. First, take a handful of coffee beans and rub it in the areas of your black jeans you want to fade. Then rinse the jeans with boiling water to get rid of the dye and coffee residue. This method will give your jeans a nice faded look.
3. Salt
Although this method seems weird at first, trust us, it definitely works. Salt offers the perfect amount of abrasive properties to fade even the darkest jeans without causing any damage to the fibers. Any sort of salt is fine with this method.
First, fill a bucket or your bathtub with cold water and add 2 cups of salt to it. Then submerge your jeans in the solution for around 1 hour. Try stirring from time to time to keep things even. When you get desired fade, wring out the water and let it dry. It is a great method, but the drawback is it will only fade colors slightly.
4. Vinegar
Vinegar is an eco-friendly acidic substance that can be used to fade dark jeans. You can use this natural cleaning agent in two ways to fade your black jeans. One way is by adding vinegar with detergents in your washing machine, and another one is soaking the jeans in the vinegar and water solution overnight.
B. Chemicals
Chemical solvents are usually used in industrial fading as well as in any house since they act quicker. However, they are not safer than the previous items.
1. Bleach
Fading jeans with bleach is the most popular method of all since it is the best method if you want to keep your jeans black for a long time. Although it can be riskier for both you and your jeans, this method is quick and effective if done right.
At first, get a bleach with a higher concentration to get natural grey color. Then put the jeans flat on a newspaper or old towel. Do not forget to wear gloves, a mask, and goggles if possible. Start with a little amount of bleach to test how it will work and if then try bleaching the area you want to fade.
You can also bleach your jeans with hot water in a washing machine or bathtub. To do this method, you will need around half a cup of bleach. When you get the desired color, rinse the jeans two times without using any soap. Then wash with detergent and fabric softener and air dry, you will be satisfied.
2. Potassium Permanganate
Potassium permanganate is a chemical that can lighten dark fabrics. You can find this product in most craft or fabric stores. To fade your black jeans, add a 1/2 tablespoon of this chemical to one liter hot water and soak the jeans overnight.
C. Tools
Tools are great to lighten only certain area of jeans perfectly. They may not be too safe, but they are safer than chemicals.
1. Sandpaper
You will need low-grit sandpaper to fade the jeans, but you can go higher grit if needed. To be precise, get 180-grit sandpaper. Lay your jeans on a flat surface and slowly rub back and forth with the sandpaper on the area you want to fade. When you get the desired look, wash the jeans to remove excess dye.
2. Pumice Stone
Pumice stone works the same way sandpaper does. You just need to hold the stone and rub the desired area. You can try soaking the jeans for an hour before rubbing them to fade color, it will make removing dye easier. But it can also weaken the jean fiber, so do not put much pressure while rubbing to avoid fabric damage.
D. Natural Methods
Using any natural method is the most eco-friendly, safest, and cheapest way to fade your black jeans.
1. Sunlight
Fading jeans with sunlight are the easiest method of all. Place your jeans in a location where they can be exposed to direct sunlight for at least an hour and sunlight will do its job and fade the black jeans. You can also try using sun lamps since they can emit UV rays that can help fade the fabric’s color.
2. Hot Water Wash
Fading your jeans with hot water is quite an easy method. All you need to do is to immerse your jeans in hot water after wearing them for a couple of days. After washing, you will surely see the jeans is lighter than before.
3. Wear and Wash
You can also fade your jeans by normal repeated wearing and washing. However, this method is slower than most other methods.
Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
- Can I bleach jeans to make them white?
Yes, you can, but it will take a lot of time and patience. Use bleach with proper instructions to get the quickest result.
- How do you fix blotchy bleached jeans?
You will have to deactivate the bleaching action to fix blotchy bleached jeans. To do this, you have to rinse the bleach out at first, and then soak your jeans in hydrogen peroxide solution for at least 15 minutes. Then wash again, your jeans will be okay.
Final Verdict
Learning how to fade black jeans is simple. Nevertheless, use extreme caution when utilizing chemicals to fade your jeans since they can be harmful if ingested or inhaled in their vapor. Also, use sandpaper or pumice stone carefully since you can damage the fabric or scratch your skin.
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