How to Wash Black & Blue Jeans without Fading Their Color

• Turn your jeans inside out and wash them with a color protectant detergent on the gentlest, coolest cycle your machine can do.
• Air dry your jeans right side out. To prevent wrinkles, hang them up by one of the back belt loops.
• Set the dye of black (or other dark) jeans by soaking them in cold water with 1 cup (236 mL) of vinegar and a dash of salt for 15-30 minutes before their first wash.

Preserving Black Jeans

Set the dye before washing black jeans for the first time. Fill a large bucket or a clean sink with cold water, then add 1 cup (236 mL) of distilled, white vinegar and 1 tablespoon (17 g) of salt. Soak the black jeans for about 15-30 minutes to lock in the dye before washing them for the first time (you only have to do this once, not before every wash). The acetic acid in the vinegar helps lock the dye into the denim fibers, making it less likely to seep out during a wash.

Spot treat grease stains with household cleaners like Pine Sol. Fortunately, most stains won’t show on black jeans because of the dark color of the denim. However, grease stains and other visible stains might show. Simply dab the stain with regular Pine Sol or Lestoil, then rinse the area with water and a few drops of detergent or dish soap. This prevents the need to wash black jeans each time they get slightly dirty. Alternatively, hand wash the jeans as normal after dabbing with Pine Sol.

Hand wash black jeans whenever possible. Empty the pockets, turn the jeans inside out, and button them closed. Then, fill a clean sink or bucket with cold water and add just a few drops of detergent for delicates or dark colored fabric and ½ cup (118 mL) of white vinegar. Agitate the jeans by hand for a few minutes, then let them soak for an hour. Once they’re done soaking, press the excess water out of them with a clean towel and hang them up to dry, right side out. If you have to machine wash them, use the gentlest wash cycle possible and wash them with like colors in cool or cold water.

Hang up black jeans or lay them flat to dry. Always avoid putting black jeans in the dryer when possible. Instead, hang them right side out by a back belt loop to avoid wrinkles, or lay them on top of a clean towel on a flat surface to air dry. Make sure to keep them out of direct sunlight.

Washing Blue Jeans

Turn your jeans inside out and button them closed prior to washing. Make this a part of your routine each time you throw a pair of jeans in with the laundry, regardless of color. Turning the jeans inside out prevents the detergent from wearing as harshly on the dye, so they’ll maintain more of their color. Turning them inside out also prevents other clothes from rubbing against the outside of the denim, which can cause the color to fade and the fabric to wear out.

Use color-preserving detergent (especially for dark jeans), or vinegar. If you notice your jeans seem to fade a bit with each wash, use a color protectant detergent like Woolite Dark Defense or Clorox for Colors. These detergents are available at most supermarkets or department stores. Alternatively, opt to use vinegar in place of detergent—just add ½ cup (118 mL) of white vinegar to the machine with no detergent and wash as normal. Detergent is meant to eliminate stains but often does not differentiate between stains and dye. Vinegar is milder and will clean your jeans without removing the dye. Vinegar has a strong smell. However, it will eventually fade once the jeans are dried in fresh air (vinegar is a natural deodorizer, after all).

Wash jeans with other garments instead of by themselves. Wait until you have a lot of dark clothes that need washing before washing your jeans. Jeans tend to fade less when washed with other dark clothing. Dark dyes can fade in the wash and swirl around with other clothes, but if clothing is packed in together, less dye will fade out. Wash dark jeans with other dark clothing if you can. That way, if the dye does bleed a bit, it won’t stain or damage lighter colored jeans or clothes. Wash your jeans in medium loads of laundry to avoid overloading the washer (they may not get as clean, and the extra weight of wet denim could wear out your machine over time).

Use the gentlest spin cycle and lowest temperature. Jeans require a gentle wash and cool temperatures to prevent fading. Set your washer to the slowest spin cycle possible and the lowest temperature water. If there's an option for a gentle wash or a hand wash on your washing machine, use that. If you're up to it, wash your jeans by hand, especially if they’re coated or embellished. This is more gentle on them than machine washing, even though it’s more labor-intensive.

Wash your jeans as infrequently as possible, or every 4 to 6 weeks. Jeans do not actually need to be washed as regularly as other clothing items. In fact, washing jeans too often can cause them to fade prematurely. If you notice any stains between washes, spot clean with household cleaners rather than throwing the jeans in the wash. To spot clean most light stains, lightly wipe away any moisture as soon as possible, then dab the spot from inside the jeans with a clean cloth doused in warm, soapy water.

Caring for Jeans After a Wash

Let jeans air dry indoors when possible. Hang up your jeans right side out (not inside out) on a shower curtain rod or on a drying rack if you have the time and space. Choose a spot away from windows, exterior doors, or other sources of direct sunlight, since sunlight can cause them to fade more quickly. To prevent wrinkling, hang jeans up by one of the back belt loops. Sunlight is great for drying and brightening white fabrics, so white jeans are OK to dry outdoors if you prefer. Keep all other colors of denim away from sunlight, though.

Use dryers only at the lowest heat settings possible. If you need to use a dryer for any reason, like if you need dry jeans right away, use the lowest heat setting on your machine. The higher the heat setting, the more likely the jeans are to fade.

Mist your jeans with vodka to remove odors between washes. If your jeans start to smell, do not immediately throw them back in the wash. Instead, fill a spray bottle with vodka (the cheap stuff works—no need to waste good liquor!) or a half water-half vodka mix. Lightly mist the jeans without soaking them and wait for them to air dry. Once dry, the smell should be gone. Some people suggest putting your jeans in the freezer overnight to kill odor-causing bacteria without washing. This might work temporarily, but isn’t a long-term solution (it can’t hurt to try, though!).