Gransnet forums

Arts & crafts

Bleach on tunic top

(51 Posts)
ALT57 Thu 15-Jul-21 11:38:51

Whilst shopping did not realise that bleach bottle was leaking and have now 2 patches on favourite top.

I do not want to discard it and wondered if I could embroider a simple pattern over the top. I have never embroidered before eeek!!! Is there such a thing as a simple pattern for beginners and would I need a hoop. I am beginning to think this is going to cost more than the top.

PippaZ Thu 15-Jul-21 12:00:29

You might find it easier to applique over the spots. There are a lot of Youtube tutorials that will help you with this.

Trixii Thu 15-Jul-21 14:24:43

How about some iron-on motifs? I spilt 2 spots of hair colour on my blouse, and covered them over with a large and a small iron-on daisy, bought from a wool shop.

MissAdventure Thu 15-Jul-21 14:27:38

I use a permanent marker.

ExDancer Thu 15-Jul-21 14:30:12

I would do the same as trixi, there are lots of pretty iron-on motifs on the internet. Eventually the glue looses strength though, and you have to get out the needle and thread. sad

Lillie Thu 15-Jul-21 16:32:42

i use sharpie permanent markers, they come in every colour

ALT57 Thu 15-Jul-21 17:19:08

I have been to Hobbycraft but all their motifs are too small to cover the marks.

As it is a burnt orange colour I am not sure I will find a match for a marker pen.

I will look into applique thanks all

JackyB Thu 15-Jul-21 18:44:50

You could also get some t-shirt printing paper and print a litlle flower or something which you can then iron on. Or dye the whole top a darker colour. You have to bleach it all first, though.,or the stains will still be visible.

annodomini Thu 15-Jul-21 19:06:29

I used a dark blue sharpie when I got a bleach mark on my navy cords. It worked perfectly. One thing to beware of when you choose to dye a garment is that the thread used to stitch the seams is probably polyester and won't take the dye. I learnt the hard way when I dyed a red top navy blue and ended up with red stitching which didn't look quite right. So, if you're dyeing, it's best to use a colour as close as possible to the original.

Witzend Fri 16-Jul-21 09:04:50

I tried dyeing a fairly expensive linen top that was bleach-splashed. Had to use a different colour, since Dylon didn’t have the same shade.
Unfortunately the stitching was evidently polyester, so that didn’t work - I had to bin it.
When a label says ‘100% linen or cotton I do think that should include the sewing thread!

Jess20 Sat 17-Jul-21 10:40:01

As Lillie suggests, permanent ink sharpies - worked on a black cotton dress. Embroidery isn't too difficult, can get iron on transfers to fill in but do check the silks a not too think and don't bleed colour when washed. I'd probably do small flowers in the same colour as the garment so it was quite subtle.

Coconut Sat 17-Jul-21 10:42:24

This happened to me on a chambray top that I love. Luckily it has lace insets so it sort of blended in !

ALT57 Sat 17-Jul-21 10:45:31

Thanks to everyone for replying. You have given me ideas I had not thought of.

Skullduggery Sat 17-Jul-21 10:49:08

Simple embroidery stitches aren’t too difficult to learn so depending on the size of the splashes, I think that will look very nice.
I think appliqué only works well on a bigger area otherwise it might look odd.
I’d only resort to a sharpie if it was a top I wasn’t bothered about.

CBT61 Sat 17-Jul-21 10:50:01

How about more bleach? That’s what I did to this top…,

grannygranby Sat 17-Jul-21 10:53:46

you can get some beautiful patches from here www.jessdewahls.com/patchyourselfhappy

Toddleo Sat 17-Jul-21 11:01:47

I ended up making a bleach/water solution, dipped the whole garment in and left to soak, which stripped out all of the original colour, and I then re dyed with a dylon machine dye in a new colour. A bit of a palaver, but it gave my trousers a new lease of life.

knspol Sat 17-Jul-21 11:03:37

CBT61 - great idea, love it!

Bobdoesit Sat 17-Jul-21 11:09:21

CBT61 - that is amazing and such a good idea. I might try that on a pair of bleach splashed jeans. It doesn't matter too much if I ruin them as I can't wear them as they are. Thanks!

Theoddbird Sat 17-Jul-21 11:15:03

A piece of lace might work. Depends on your taste of course. Maybe a group of flowers made from gathered lace

Paperbackwriter Sat 17-Jul-21 11:20:16

grannygranby

you can get some beautiful patches from here www.jessdewahls.com/patchyourselfhappy

Ha - I was just about to post the same recommendation! I've got an order in with her as we speak!

jaylucy Sat 17-Jul-21 11:21:41

Ebay- you will be able to find a myriad of iron on patches in all sizes and colours.
I got some great sparkly Christmas tree ones for a couple of quid to put onto a plain top instead of spending money on a Christmas jumper!
Just remember to put something between the two layers of your top when you iron on the motif though ( I used a square of a corregated box) or the two layers can stick together and also helps to keep both layers smooth.

Rumbabba Sat 17-Jul-21 11:50:41

You could use a Dylan dye and change the colour completely!

4allweknow Sat 17-Jul-21 11:52:55

Embroidery can be quite heavy so you'd need to consider whether the material wouldn't sag. Iron on transfers are what I would go for or splash more bleach on to make it look really part of the design.

Smurf52 Sat 17-Jul-21 11:54:51

You can get iron on transfers?