Jean Lab

In this lab, we were trying to find out if bleach could lighten jeans and give it the perfect faded look. So we asked: "What concentration of bleach is best to fade the color out of new denim material in 10 minutes without visible damage to the fabric?" Our hypothesis was: "If bleach breaks down stain pigments, then it can break down color pigments and make jeans lighter." We found out that 100% bleach did the best at removing color, but 12.5% bleach had the least fabric damage out of all the solutions with bleach. 50% bleach was the best overall. With 50% bleach, the amount of color removed was close to 100% bleach, but it had less fabric damage than 100% bleach. The 50% bleach solution had an average of 5.3% (out of 10) color removal and 1.6% (out of 10) of visible damage.

While our hypothesis supported our data, there could have been errors due to lack of proper timing. Our times were not exact. Some of the denim squares from the jeans had stayed in the bleach longer than others. Some of them also was soaked in the water longer. Some of them were even taken out of the bleach too early. The ones that stayed in the bleach longer could have become lighter than the ones that were taken out at the right time. The ones that were taken out earlier might not have as much color removed as the ones that were taken out at the right time. Due to these errors, in future experiments I would recommend multiple people taking out the denim squares at the right time instead of just one person taking all the squares out of the bleach/water.

This lab was done so that we could find out if bleach could lighten jeans. From this lab, I learned that bleach can lighten jeans, but it could also damage the jeans during the bleaching process. Based on my experience with this lab, I now know that I can bleach my jeans with 50% bleach and get a great result with minimal fabric damage. I could also try bleaching denim jackets or other denim products, not just jeans. This lab has taught me many new things.

Lab start: August 29, 2016
Lab end: September 2, 2016