There are times I am so thankful for my job. Painting a pair of pants this week was one of those times.

I provide wardrobe for a short-form series that airs on the Style Network in which our Fearless Fad Checker tests out extravagant trends to see if they work in real life. This season, one of the styles in question is graffiti prints. Proenza Schouler’s artistic jeans weren’t exactly in our budget. So instead, I did my own DIY version.

First, I hit the streets for inspiration. There’s an alley behind La Brea in Los Angeles, which has some pretty impressive graffiti art. I snapped a bunch of photos, and then headed to Blick Art to purchase some fabric paint. Next, I picked up a pair of jeans from Forever 21 for under $10, bringing the total cost of my DIY project to under 40 bucks.

Using one of the photos as inspiration, I painted free form on the pants. Since the jeans were dark, it took 2-3 coats of paint for vibrant color. I then filled in lines with black for a more dramatic effect. The great thing about fabric paint is it dries so quickly. After a night, I was able to turn the jeans over and paint the back.
I then hung the jeans on my balcony and touched up the sides so the front and back blended together. I waited one more night before trying them on. I am so happy with the way they turned I almost don’t want to give them up for the segment! When my friend walked in and saw them, she mentioned I might have another career opportunity ahead of me. What do you think? Would you buy one-of-a-kind Sydne Summer jeans?