How I updated my wardrobe for less than $2.00!

Everyone loves a good pair of blue jeans, and this season dark blue denim seems to be all the rage. But who really wants to pay $80 or more for a single pair of those trendy denims?? Not this girl!

It's important to me to keep up with the with the latest trends, but it's also important for me to keep within my budget.

This afternoon I looked through my closet and found 4 pairs of jeans that I've had since high school. When I was in high school, faded wash denim was "the thing". They're all broken in and still fit nicely in all the right places, but I couldn't help but feel a little outdated every time I wore them.

Then it hit me. What if I updated their color myself? It'd certainly save a lot of money and I wouldn't have to break in another pair of jeans! So off to Walmart I went. I purchased 1 package of Rit color dye in Navy blue ($1.66). As soon as I got home I went straight to work!

The directions said to fill the drum of the washing machine with hot water. While it was filling, I was to mix the dye in a bowl with 2 cups of hot water. 

Next, I poured the dye mixture into the washing machine with 1 cup of salt. (I'm not exactly sure why the salt is necessary, but I'm sure there's a good reason!)

Then I put all of my faded jeans in the washing machine. I let them set in the water for 30 minutes before continuing with the normal wash cycle.

Finally, I was to dry the jeans in a full drying cycle. While the clothes were drying, I washed out the drum of the washing machine by running a full cycle to see to it that no dye was left behind.

I was SO excited to pull the "new" jeans out of the dryer. I could hardly wait for them to dry!

Here's the final product!

 I'm very pleased with the results! I honestly feel like I have four new pairs of jeans ready for the Fall season!
I'm very tempted to try this with my black clothes and cardigans that have faded over the years.

Do you have any old clothes that could use updating? I encourage you to give this method a try!