Every parent with an active child knows that making new blue jeans last the whole school year can be quite a task! From buying to washing, here are a few tips and tricks to help make your back to school blues last just a little bit longer!
Purchasing:
Checking sizing: The Neck Trick! As any parent will tell you, active children plus clothing shopping will often equal total meltdown… and the kids have a hard time with it, too! To quickly tell if a pair of jeans will fit your child, try the neck trick! To do this, make sure the jeans are buttoned or hooked, then wrap them around your child’s neck like a cape. If the ends touch or slightly overlap, they will fit! If the overlap is large they will be too big, and a gap means they will be too small.
Buy adjustable waist bands! Buying jeans that are slightly large with adjustable waistbands will help save you some future shopping trips with your growing children.
DID YOU KNOW? Jeans without spills can be reused several times before needing to be washed!
Washing:
To prevent fading: The first time you wash the jeans, wash with a tablespoon of salt. This will help to set the dye. Zip and button the jeans, then turn them inside out for each washing. Wash with cold water, then air dry!
Resizing: Wash with hot water and dry with high heat to make jeans tighter. To loosen jeans, hand stretch waistband after washing and then air dry.
To soften: Wash with ½ cup vinegar, which will also help prevent fading!
Stain and Odor Removal:
Odor removal: Dust the jeans with baking soda and place in a ziplock bag overnight. Alternatively, the jeans can be placed in a ziplock bag and frozen overnight.
To get out gum, use warm vinegar and a hard bristled toothbrush. Another popular method is to place an ice cube on the gum and leave it until the gum is frozen, then peel off.
To remove ink, soak overnight in a bucket of water that has one glass of milk added. Then apply hairspray to the stained area and wash with regular detergent.
To remove grease stains apply baby powder or talcum powder for one day, then brush off powder and machine wash.
Do you have your own blue jean saving tips? Let us know!
