Name: Claire
Message: My colors on tye dye items aren't very brilliant (they look faded). Is that normal? Or something I am doing wrong?

No, it is not normal. Properly made tie-dyes are more likely to be too bright than too dull. It is easy to make extremely bright tie-dyes once you figure out what you are doing wrong. There are several possible causes of dull colors:

1. Using the wrong dye. If you want very bright colors, never use all-purpose dye for tie-dyeing!

For bright colors in tie-dyeing, you must use fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye, which is best purchased by mail-order from any of the companies around the world that sell good dye, which are listed on my Sources for Supplies page. Note that the dye should look much, much too dark on the fabric before you wash out the excess unattached dye. Start by following the How to Dye recipe, even if the dye looks too dark.

2. Using the wrong fiber. You need 100% natural fibers, such as 100% cotton or 100% linen or rayon. (Rayon is only partially synthetic; viscose rayon, which is known as just 'rayon' in the US, is a pure cellulose fiber which dyes beautifully.) Dyeing polyester with cotton dyes will not work at all; dyeing 50% polyester 50% cotton blends will result in faded or pastel colors. Important: the fabric must not be treated with any permanent press or stain resistant finishes! Also, white fabrics will dye up into brighter colors than off-white 'natural' colored fabrics.

3. Using the wrong temperature. Cool water fiber reactive dyes, such as Procion MX dyes, do not require the near-boiling temperatures needed for all-purpose dye, but they don't work in the cold, either. They require a room temperature at or above 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 C.), and I prefer somewhat warmer temperatures myself. There are many ways to keep the dyed items warm enough in a cool house on a winter's day, but I won't go into them in this message.

4. Omitting the auxiliary chemicals. Procion MX dye requires that you use soda ash or another chemical that will increase the pH to 10 or 11, or at least 9. This is usually done as a pre-soak, but the soda ash can be included in other ways as well. (Soda ash does nothing useful to brighten or increase the permanence of all-purpose dye.) Urea is also useful in tie-dyeing, though you can get by without it if you wrap each item in a plastic bag to keep it from completely drying out while the dye reacts.

5. Inadequate time. Items that have been tie-dyed with fiber reactive dyes must be left to rest, still wet with the dye and soda ash, for one to two days at a room temperature of 70 degrees F., before you rinse them out. Higher temperatures do not require as much time. Eight hours should be more than sufficient at 90 degrees F. Leaving the dye to react for plenty of time also markedly reduces backstaining of lighter areas by dye from darker areas of the same garment.

6. Old dyes. Fiber reactive dyes should be bought fresh every couple of years (or every year, if your supplier is not so good about keeping fresh dye on hand - PRO Chemical & Dye is one of the best sources for really fresh dye.) It must not be stored in a hot place, such as a car in the sunlight, because even one day in a very hot place will destroy the reactivity of the dye. After you mix Procion MX dye in water, it will be good for only a week or two at room temperature, or only an hour or two if you add the soda ash to the dye mixture, as some prefer to do.

7. Bad color combinations. Placing complementary colors together, such as red next to green, or blue next to orange, or purple next to yellow, causes them to mix together and make a dull muddy color, unless you are thickening your dye; it is safer to place colors that are adjacent on the color wheel next to each other, such as purple next to turquoise, or green next to yellow. However, using some black for contrast in your tie-dyeing makes the bright colors appear brighter.

8. Bad water. If your water is very hard, your dyes will work much better if you add a water softener, such as sodium hexametaphosphate (the active ingredient in the original Calgon). You can order this product, often under the name Metaphos, from your dye supplier. Use it also when washing your clothing after dyeing.

Which of these possibilities do you think is the cause of your past problems in tie-dyeing?

Also see the FAQ section of my website, under "My colors are not very bright. What did I do wrong?", and the answer to "What would you suggest to maintain really bright colors?" in this blog for May 24, 2005.


(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)