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Make a ‘bleachy’ garden T-shirt

Garden Junk fun!, How to: Easy project ideas

How to make a bleachy garden tee

Bleachy tee

My bleached garden t-shirt

Here’s an easy craft to make during the mid-day heat of summer. Make a design on a basic t-shirt using a surprising tool,…liquid bleach gel!

You need:

  1. A plain cotton/poly T-shirt from a craft store Tip : Choose a dark color.
  2. Bleach gel, like Clorox Soft Scrub
  3. Newspaper
  4. Water
  5. Rags or paper towels
  6. Leaves

Directions

Cover your work surface with newspaper. Fold more newspaper and insert inside the T-shirt and sleevesso nothing will soak through the top layer.

Cover table with news paper

Cover table with newspaper

On the dry shirt, lay out and plan a design you’d like on the shirt. Apply bleach gel to one side of the leaf, cover with a folded toel or paper towel and press into the material.

Place and press, h ave water nearby

Place and press, have water and towels nearby to wipe fingers.

Finish design reusing the bleachy leaves.

Finish design reusing the bleachy cedar leaves and pine needles

Lift the leaf and continue to ‘stamp’ the shirt with bleach covered leaves.

You can reuse the leaves over and over. Include the sleeves in your design if you want.

Remove the last leaves and let the bleach sit on the shirt until it has bleached as much as you’d like then rinse it with cold water.

Wash and dry as usual in the washing machine.

Make a two-toned design by allowing a little time to pass before putting the next leaves on.

Tip: If you’re good at drawing, use a Clorox Bleach pen for your design and really get creative!

 

All done,..easy

All done,..easy

Carol Hughes tried this and had fun doing the project. She says, Here’s  “my take” on the bleachy t shirt.  One or two leaf patterns turned out very nicely.  My favorite is worm eaten cottonwood leaves.  Pretty enough to make a pillow of it, or something….. I wear it every chance I get!

Carol Hughes's try

Carol Hughes’s try

She says, “I am grateful every day that I still want to (and can) create something.  I have so many ideas that I am bothered by all the mundane responsibilities of housekeeping.  Maybe that is why God chose for us to live in a tiny house with not enough room for all the things I’d love to try!”

We say, “Carol, wait for a rainy day for housework!”

Tags | bleach pen, design a t shirt, Garden T-shirt, soft scrub bleach, t-shirt, tee shirt
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