Second drafts and pink shorts

Pink, orange, and purple Sideye shorts with logo on left cheek.

I’d like to tell you about these shorts, if I may.

These here are second-draft shorts.

A friend of mine, Channelle, was one of the first people to trust my tie-dye potential enough to buy a few pieces of clothing just for me to dye.

Here’s the thing, though, I wasn’t very good yet.

I got caught up in dying purples and blues with RIT liquid one evening. I was trying different things (a necessary pursuit when learning something new but something that still makes me feel shame for not killing it the first time.) I added the cute, summer-perf shorts Channelle had sent me to the mix. They. Were. Awful. And, that’s kind. They looked like a pair of jean’s half-removed sister, but with purple smudges.

So, now I’m going to speed through the next bit because it’s entirely unremarkable and exemplifies some poor decision making on my part. I rinsed and washed the shorts and they looked much, much worse … like faded elastic-waisted jean shorts (jorts?) Then I use the dyer’s eraser — bleach! They were beige-y, not crisp at all. And then I made one more round of bad decisions. Can’t even remember how it looked, but I bleached ‘em yet again, washed them, and dropped ‘em in soda ash for an ice-dye project. Prepped and ready for the ice, I got hold of both sides of the waist and the butt-cheek fabric literally peeled off the pair of shorts. Now I know quarantine shorts have different rules. Who’s to judge when no one can see but these were lacking a right cheek entirely.

I felt so bad (embarrassed is the real word) that I bought Chan’ a replacement pair and played around with ice, pink, orange, and purple.

Pink, orange, and purple Sideye shorts with logo on left cheek.

This is where I pitch second drafts because I love these! I can’t decide if they look more like ink-suspended in water or watercolor on fabric, but they were the first clothing item that made me think I could probably make something that someone might want to buy some day. 

So … here’s to second drafts and the slice of bravery it takes to try again.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.