I bought two pair of Wrangler jean shorts at Walmart because 1) I needed them to replace two that I'd worn for 10 years and that now have holes in them in places that might get me arrested in South Carolina, and 2) they are the only ones I've seen that didn't hang below my knees, or worse, hang mid-calf. (Not a good look for old guys like me even if I could slam dunk a basketball.) The only problem I had with them is that they were dark-blue-jean color and I really wanted something more bleached out like the Levi's I was replacing, but I took what I can get.
That's the preamble to today's laundry experiment. I figured that if Levi's can bleach jeans, I can too. I put them in the washer and put bleach in the dispenser. I have one of those smart washing machines that senses how many clothes are in it and adjusts the water level accordingly. I ignored the fact that two pair of shorts wouldn't require a lot of water and I added 3/4 of a cup of bleach (like you would use for a full load) to the dispenser. Then I hit the start button.
The good news is that the shorts didn't come out whiter than a Republican President. The bad news is that they came out looking as dark-blue as when they went in.
Since I'm a guy I figured that there was only one explanation. I didn't use enough bleach. So back in the washer, this time with 2 cups of bleach.
The good news? The shorts don't have holes in them. The bad news? They're still as freaking dark-blue as when I bought them.
Wrangler, I salute you! You've discovered the perfect color-fast blue dye. Please share your secret with the Mars people. Those blue M&M's keep staining my hand.
Of course it's possible that all of this time Clorox hasn't been making my whites whiter than white.
All that bleach didn't fade them?!! How can that be? I feel somewhat disheartened by this fact. My world has gone topsy-turvy.
Posted by: Ally Bean | 02/29/2012 at 03:27 PM
It's possible that your washing machine just hates you. It's hated you in the past. lol
Posted by: Justine | 02/29/2012 at 04:01 PM
I was hoping the machine and I were over that.
Posted by: Mike | 02/29/2012 at 04:04 PM
Skip the machine. Try putting the shorts in a stoppered sink and add the bleach. You can watch and see what happens. Or doesn't.
Posted by: chuck boyd | 02/29/2012 at 08:07 PM
Whiter than a Republican president--that's funny! When I want things to fade they never do, but if I don't want colors to bleed, they end up all over everything. Bright pink is the worst. Thankfully, we have very little need of shorts here in WA, at least until summer. :)
Posted by: Margaret | 02/29/2012 at 10:15 PM
Should I mention that indigo is covalently bonded to the cotton?
Posted by: LIttleMike | 03/13/2012 at 08:16 PM