Would it be best to try to lighten the color of the cotton before trying to dye it, or to simply dye over the pink?

Name: Katie

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Country or region: USA

Message: I have a fairly bright, bubblegum-y pink cotton dress with white detailing and a polyester lining. I'd like to dye the dress purple. I understand that the polyester lining likely won't take color, the detailing will probably turn out a darker color, and that I should use a cold water fiber reactive dye for best results. Would it be best to try to lighten the color of the cotton before trying to dye it, or to simply dye over the pink?

My apologies if this has been asked already. I looked through previously asked questions and didn't find anything that I felt really answered my question. Any input you have will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

If it's an orangish, peachy pink, then I think you should lighten it first, using Rit Color Remover or Jacquard Color Remover or some such product. (See "What chemicals can be used to remove dye?".) This is because yellow and orange, when mixed into purple, tend to turn it brownish, since yellow is the complement color (opposite on the color wheel) of purple. I would avoid the use of chlorine bleach, because its hypochlorite will tend to stain the polyester and unattractive dull yellowish color that cannot be removed.

However, if the dress is a clear pink with no orangishness to it at all, and if it's lighter than the purple you want, not darker than it, then there should be no need to remove any of it first before trying to dye it purple. If you overdye a bright deep pink with blue, then it will make purple. If the pink is less intense, it will have less effect, and you should just use a purple dye.

Chances are good, by the way, that the detailing may be made from polyester or nylon, neither of which will take the fiber reactive dye under the same conditions that cotton will. So, the detailing will probably end up white, not darker, depending on what it's made of. If it's made of rayon, it will probably end up darker, and it will be a bluer purple than the rest of the dress, without the original pink color to cover.

You could dye the whole dress at the same time, using a large cooking pot, iDye for the cotton, and iDye Poly for the polyester and nylon. You could correct the poor washfastness of the direct dye in iDye on the cotton with a commercial dye fixative such as Retayne or iDye Fixative. However, the boiling water would have a very strong tendency to shrink the cotton fabric. When a lined dress shrinks, the lining never shrinks at the same rate as the outer layers, so the shape of the dress is ruined. I think your choice, using a cool water fiber reactive dye, is best, and it's certainly a lot less trouble, and less expensive, too, since it won't require you to invest in a dyeing pot.

The easiest way to dye the dress a solid color will be in a top-loading washing machine. See "How can I dye clothing or fabric in the washing machine?".

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Posted: Wednesday - June 08, 2011 at 09:11 AM

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Would it be best to try to lighten the color of the cotton before trying to dye it, or to simply dye over the pink?

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