Name: Jane

Message: I have a black hat (believe it is sinamay) which has a black fabric band and decorative black feathers at side. I bought this hat for a wedding but now realise it does not go with my outfit. Can you please give me some advice about dying it, the colour I am aiming for is a burgundy colour.

Dye is transparent. As a result, dye can be used only to darken colors, not lighten them. There is no dye that can turn any fiber from black to burgundy.

Chemicals that lighten dye are called discharge agents. The most popular, and also one of the most destructive and dangerous, is household bleach. Chances are that it would destroy your Sinamay hat, though I am not familiar with Sinamay and am not certain that it would do so. Another slightly more gentle discharge agent is sodium hydrosulfite, commonly available as Rit brand Color Remover. If you use this chemical, or submerge your hat in any other liquid, be prepared to have to have the hat reblocked to regain its shape.

It would probably be best to buy a new hat in the color you desire, but it might be possible to alter the color of your hat acceptably with fabric paint. See "Fabric Paints: a different way to color fibers". If the hat is quite stiff, you can use artists' acrylics, instead of fabric paint. Artist's acrylics will stiffen any fabric to which they are applied, but this may not be a problem with a hat that is already quite stiff.

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[Updated June 8, 2008.]