Name: Larry
Message: How practical is it to dye mens underpants from white to black? My GF doesn't like the "tightywhiteys" I wear but colored Jockeys cost so much more than the whites. Besides I hate to throw away usable clothing.

Very practical indeed! I've dyed 100% cotton underwear many times. Of course I usually dye them different bright colors, using tie-dye or preferably low water immersion dyeing, rather than black.

The most important thing to do is choose the right dye. All-purpose dye is easy to find in stores, but tends to produce grey rather than black, and bleeds onto everything else in the laundry for the life of the garment. Not very practical at all! It's a reasonable choice for nylon underwear, however, and especially for cotton underwear that is covered with nylon lace.

Fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye, gives much better results. Buy it by mail-order from any of the dye supply companies around the world listed on my Sources for Supplies page. If you want solid colors, follow the instructions found on "How can I dye clothing or fabric in the washing machine?". If you want something a little more complex, but not tie-dyed, consider low water immersion; combining a black dye mixture with blue or green would produce nice results. See "How to Do Low Water Immersion Dyeing".

One problem you will find in dyeing readymade white garments is that the polyester thread that was used to sew them together will stay white. If the stitching is even, however, this will look intentional, like decorative top-stitching. I do not know of any source for underwear sewn with dyeable cotton thread.

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