What! What!: DIY Acid Wash Shorts

Can you tell I love the rough look of denim? I am an 80's child so that could explain it! Anyways, I love baggy shorts (think boyfriend fit) and a tighter fit. I am a mom so I am definitely not wearing the same tightness I did ten years ago...

Here is a simple, fun, and no-fail DIY.

I wanted a really baggy pair of shorts. I went to Goodwill and bought a man's size jeans. They fit in the waist, were a little baggy but still fit, and cut them to fit just at my knees...Stay with me here, you will roll them up!

So, cut them to how you want them. I wanted to roll mine which is why I kept them at my knees.

My jeans after I cut them. The frays are fine!

Next, you want to distress them. If you like that look. I do. I used scissors and a cheese grater. You want to use the tiniest little holes on the grater. Make sure you are just doing the side of the jeans you want. Put your hand inside the pants up through the leg and rub it along the grater. Watch your fingers!!

You can also cut slits in the knees or where ever. They will look weird until you wash them and let them fray. But we aren't there yet!

Now you want to tie the jeans up. This is where this becomes totally experimental. Basically where the rubber band is, the bleach isn't. So bunch and tie them up how you want. I actually used a hair tie because my bands were too small. It worked fine. Here are the three ways I figured out you can do this process:

1. Band it up
2. Just dip the bottom ends or top directly into bleach
3. Use a rag drenched in bleach to wipe directly onto the spots you want bleached.

For this, I did the band.

After you have your denim tied up, you are going to fill a bucket with hot water and bleach. I initially put too much water to bleach. I recommend more water than bleach for sure but not so much water that the bleach is less potent to the denim. Luckily my laundry room has a sink so it is the perfect experiment lab.

Now that you have your bucket full, drop your jeans in there. I used a hanger to poke them around.

OK, now you wait. It will look like it isn't doing much at all. I ran upstairs for maybe three minutes and when I came back down they were completely bleached out. This was totally fine with me but if you want to keep some of the darkness, keep a close eye on them!!! After they are to where you want them, pull them out (don't get bleach on your clothes!) and rinse in cold water. Squeeze the water out and take of the bands. Admire your work and throw them in the wash. Don't wash with stuff you don't want to get bleach on!!!! I washed mine on the 25 minute cycle. After they were dry I roughed them up a little more and I was finished! Now start grabbing every denim thing you see and start bleaching away!!!