Name: Leah

Message: I have a pair of denim jeans that I have had for many years but that are faded. They are still in great shape but I want to darken them. I have read through your page, and it's very helpful, but I'm not sure what color(s) to choose to get that dark denim look?

There's always a problem in dyeing denim. The whole look of denim relies upon the fact that it's woven from half white threads and half blue threads. If you examine a piece of blue denim closely, you can see that the warp (lengthwise) threads are blue and the weft (filling) threads are white. When you dye your jeans, the warp threads will be only slightly darker than the weft threads, so what you get will look more like a solid-color twill fabric, and not like denim at all anymore.

What color should you choose? A dark navy blue seems like the obvious choice, but given that you will never be able to duplicate the denim weave, would you rather get a plain solid dark blue as close as possible to indigo denim, or would you rather try something else? Blue denim looks good when overdyed bright colors such as purple or green, as well as more ordinary medium or dark blues. I think any blue you choose should look good. Remember that it will show up only where the fabric is light; the original blue will continue to show through, since dye is transparent, unless the color you choose is much darker. Denim looks good overdyed with black (use twice as much dye powder for black). There was even a fashion a couple of years ago for "dirty denim" which involved overdyeing jeans with a muddy brown color. Keep in mind that the polyester thread used to sew the jeans together is unlikely to take up any dye, so it will remain the original color.

The best kind of dye to use on denim or any other cotton fabric is fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. It lasts much longer than all-purpose dye and is easier to use, since you don't have to heat the water to a simmer to get the best possible results. You can use it in low water immersion dyeing for subtle mottled effects, in the washing machine or a large bucket for solid colors, or in tie-dyeing for more dramatic designs.

Buying dye by mail-order is more economical in the long run than buying it locally. You can mail order Procion MX dye most economically from any of the dye companies listed on my page of "Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World".  Locally-purchased fiber reactive dye tends to cost almost as much as Rit dye, per garment to be dyed. It is convenient, though, if you can find it. To buy fiber reactive dye locally, the best choice is Jacquard Procion MX dye if you have a very good local crafts store, or look at a crafts store or fabric store for Dylon Cold Dye or Dylon Permanent, or Tulip One-Step Fashion Dye. Jacquard Procion MX and Dylon Cold dye need to be fixed with soda ash, while the others already contain it. In Europe and Australia, choices for fiber reactive dyes include Dylon Hand Dye or Dylon Machine Dye, but avoid Dylon Multi Purpose Dye because it is an all-purpose dye, with all the drawbacks of that class of dye.

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