New #46: Bleach Art

This was Project Fail for Sarah. I should have known. Bleach is great to clean white clothes, but get it near anything with color and it's disaster. Same goes for crafts.

I found this project online and was in love from the start. Not only was it easy, but the end result looked like something you'd buy from the hipster rack at Nordstrom. Here is the link to the instructions and my inspiration.

You start with a black shirt or fabric that you want to fancy up. I originally wanted a tee, but later realized the only plain black shirts I could find for cheap weren't really a style I'd ever wear. So instead I settled on a small clutch. It was made from a thicker material than T-shirts ...which may have been my downfall.

You're supposed to cover the garment (or purse) with tape and stickers to your liking. This covered area will stay dark while the rest is bleached. I used some duct tape to make a few fancy lines. I also added a bird decal sticker, an idea recommended by the posting.


Next it was time to bleach. I mixed about 30% bleach with 70% water into a spray bottle. Then I spritzed away. It seemed so wrong to intentionally spray bleach onto something black! But I guess it was in the name of crafting.


Nothing happened right away, as I hoped it would. I have a thing for instant gratification. So I put the clutch under a light in the kitchen to help it along. But an hour later, it still wasn't completely dry or bleached, so I busted out my hair dryer. That worked like magic! Within five minutes the bleach was dry, leaving blotchy rust-colored spots in its place.

Now it was time for the big unveiling. Slowly, I peeled away the tape strips one by one. What I found underneath was disappointing, to say the least. The pure black stripes I'd hoped for were no where to be found. Instead, the bleach seeped under the tape, leaving only the slightest indication that it was even covered at all. The bird decal was even more pathetic. It didn't look like anything but bad.


Maybe I should have made the tape strips bigger. Maybe I used the wrong material. Maybe I suck at bleaching. But whatever happened, this project did not work for me. Now I'm left with a clutch that looks like an infected scab. Not exactly something I'd like to use as an accessory :(