Creating Burgundy Jeans: The Process

I decided about a month ago that I wanted some coloured jeans. No problem, right? They're all around in the stores these days...

Ugh, wrong. I have a hard enough finding jeans that properly fit but now we're narrowing down to color? I found some awesome black jeggings recently so I went on a quest to find some grey jeans as well. Once those were acquired, I thought about the coloured ones once again (purple, red, etc.). My husband suggested buying a 2nd pair of the grey and dyeing them whatever color I wanted. Hmmm...

The grey jeans I used looked like this at first:

These are the Sweetheart Skinnies from Old Navy, if you're interested. They do run big so you could go down a size.

I debated stripping the grey from the jeans first, but decided against it and picked up RIT's dye in Wine instead.

This is the powder version. Basically, you open up the packet inside and add it to 2 cups of hot water. I would recommend using a bucket or a metal bowl, as this will stain easily (especially plastic). You add in 1 cup of salt to the mixture and stir.

Yes, that is a straw. See how the bowl is stained?

Next, you fill your washer with hot water. I have the option of load sizes, so I choose small. As it filled, I added the dye mixture and then a tablespoon of detergent (I use liquid). I soaked the jeans first as it was filling, then added them into the washer water. You set this to agitate for at least 30 minutes -- my washer will only go for 14, so be sure to keep a timer nearby and be ready to reset it backwards. You don't want it to rinse before 30 minutes are up! Once the 30 minute agitation is done, you set the water to cold and rinse the item. You can either do this in the washer or in the bathtub, but again be wary that this will stain. Rinse until the water runs clear. It took about 5 minutes for me.

Run your washer on an empty cycle after you're done to ensure that any remaining dye is rinsed out. Don't forget to wipe the lid and the lip -- it gets everywhere, as you can see.

Let the item hang dry or pop them in the dryer with a fabric softener sheet -- up to you. My results...

Pretty cool, huh? The burgundy mixed with the grey and created a duochrome effect. The jeans shift color depending on the light..

I'm really pleased with them. They aren't solid burgundy by any means, but I think these look a little more adult versus having solid coloured jeans (and a bit less 80s...).

It even dyed the pockets, which is cool as hell.

 I'm addicted to dyeing now! My next task is creating a kelly green cardigan. Would you want to see a post on that?

For anyone curious -- how WOULD one style burgundy jeans? Well...

A leather jacket and a statement necklace of course! (NOT this top ;-) )