Name: Stephanie

Message: I am just wondering if you have ever tie dyed ribbon for rhythmic gymnastics we would like our ribbons to have some color to them instead of being a solid color if you can help me it would be great   thank you    

Ribbons are easy to dye if they are made of a natural fiber.  A lot of people dye silk, cotton, or rayon ribbon with fiber reactive dyes, such as the dyes in a good tie-dye kit. You can dye them just as you would dye a cotton t-shirt. Wash the ribbons first, then presoak them in soda ash (unless your kit has the soda ash mixed in with the dye already), lay them out in a plastic dishpan or other plastic surface, and squirt the dyes on wherever you please. Aim for colors that are significantly darker than the ones you want, since some of the dye will inevitably fail to attach and have to be washed out.

Good types of ribbon to dye include silk ribbon, rayon ribbon (viscose rayon, that is, not rayon acetate), cotton ribbon, and nylon ribbon. Nylon can be dyed using a hot water acid dye, on the stovetop, even though it is a synthetic fiber; it acts a lot like wool when you dye it. Real silk is a versatile fiber that can be dyed either like cotton or like nylon.

Other synthetic fiber ribbons are more difficult to dye, but not impossible. 'Satin' ribbon is probably polyester, though it's possible to weave silk or rayon into satin ribbon. You can color polyester or acetate ribbons with a special mail-order polyester dye known as disperse dye. These dyes require high heat to penetrate the synthetic fibers. Dyes that work on natural fibers such as cotton or silk will not work on polyester or acetate. You can use Disperse Dye Transfer Crayons to color a design onto paper, then iron them onto your ribbons.

As long as the ribbon material is not water-resistant or stain-resistant, you can also use fabric paint. Most fabric paints must be heat-set after they have dried thoroughly, but this is easy to do, by ironing with a hot iron, or by placing them in a commercial dryer for thirty minutes at high heat (home dryers don't get hot enough). Some fabric paints, such as Color Hue Instant Set Silk Dye, can be used with no heat setting at all, but it's best to use this color only for silk, and never for polyester. Jacquard Products brand fabric paints, such as Dye-Na-Flow, can be used on polyester as well as on natural fibers.

You can even use fabric markers, which, unlike 'permanent' marking pens intended for paper, will last through many washings. I recommend almost any brand that specifies that it is intended for use on fabric, such as Marvy Uchida markers, Jacquard Products' Tee Juice markers, or FabricMate Markers. The Tee Juice markers can be squeezed to soak through a large section of ribbon at once.

If your ribbons are made of a fiber that frays or shows wear from a little exposure to water, you won't be able to use most dyes, though you may be able to use some fabric markers. It's best to use ribbons that can be hand washed.

Here are some earlier blog entries that you should read:



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