destroying denim

shirt: h&m, tank: unknown, shorts: DIY / tk maxx, socks & necklace: h&m, boots: old dorothy perkins


the sun came out to play today so my mother and i had a drive through to newcastle city centre. we went to the laing art gallery and looked at a few exhibitions, seeing everything from quentin blake to dan holdworth, david hockney and barnaby barford. then sat and had starbucks by monument in the sunshine.

i wore the white shorts i distressed for my holidays, cause my tan is still slightly lingering and i thought it would be a shame to cover up as always.

i found them looking pretty boring and miserable (below) in the clearance section of tk maxx for around £4. they were a good fit on my waist and were good quality woven denim (best for fraying and distressing), so i decided i'd cut them shorter and wreck them when i got home.

distressing tools used: small sharp scissors, a steak knife, tweezers


to create the slashed looking holes in the denim (above) - i used the scissors to cut 2 short but parallel lines across the denim. then used the tweezers to carefully pull and pluck out the vertical strings of woven denim, leaving the majority of the horizontal strings still in place.

after you've hacked them with a steak knife to get a few more scuffs, holes and frayed areas - just bung them in the wash. put them on a really hot cycle to make the distressing look more natural and 'worn out' rather than leaving them with that freshly cut up look - you'll see what i mean after you've done it.

i also bought a bunch of iron on studs from ebay years ago, i thought they'd look cute in small little patches across the denim. i put them in place then just pressed over them with my straighteners (make sure they're really hot) and voila! i love them.