Is it possible to dye clothing made of cupro?

Name: Laura

—ADVERTISEMENTS—

Country or region: USA

Message: Hello,

I was wondering if it is possible to dye a pair of Cupro shorts? The shorts are a caramel color & I would love to dye them black. The tag says 100% cupro and dry clean only, but I have washed them on a delicate cold water cycle & they held up just fine.

I did a little research per Google, Cupro is a form of rayon. So does this mean I can use a dye that works on rayon material? Also, what would be the best method to insure an even dark black color?

Yes, cupro, or cuprammonium rayon, is a manufactured regenerated cellulosic fiber, essentially just another form of rayon, though more expensive to manufacture than viscose rayon. One popular brand name for cupro is Bemberg, produced in Italy. Since it's a form of rayon, it can be dyed with the same dyes that work on other rayons. (See "How to Dye Rayon".) The best dye for rayon is a cool water fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. (See "About Fiber Reactive Dyes".) Other dyes that will work include direct dyes (which require heat for application, and fade quickly in the laundry), vat dyes (such as indigo), and naphthol dyes (which aren't used for hand dyeing here due to their dangers). All-purpose dyes, such as Rit, will work, too, since they contain direct dyes, but I don't recommend direct or all-purpose dyes for cotton or rayon, since fiber reactive dyes work so much better.

Like other forms of rayon, cupro is weak when wet, so care must be taken to avoid tearing or abrading it. I would recommend that, if you use a washing machine for dyeing cupro, you use only a delicate cycle, and that for machine laundering, later on, you consider placing the garment in a large mesh lingerie bag to protect it. I have successfully machine-washed many rayon garments, with only a couple of pieces becoming damaged, but there is always some risk of loss when washing clothing that is labeled dry clean only.

The best way to get a smooth solid color is to do the dyeing in the washing machine. (See "How can I dye clothing or fabric in the washing machine?".) Procion MX dye works extremely well for washing machine dyeing. It's best to use a top-loading washing machine for dyeing, though some have managed to do a good job in a front-loading washing machine, depending on the specific features of the washing machine in question, and in Europe you can even buy a prepackaged dye designed for use in a front-loader, Dylon Machine Dye, but you cannot buy Dylon Machine Dye in the US. Whatever dye and dyeing method you choose, it's important that the fabric is completely free of stains and surface finishes before you start.

Alternatively, you can get a large bucket to do the dyeing in, and follow a good recipe for immersion dyeing, the same as the washing machine dyeing recipe except for the smaller quantities, which is more trouble since it requires that you stir pretty much constantly for an hour. You will need Procion MX dye, soda ash, and ordinary non-iodized table salt. The bucket must be large enough for the piece of clothing to move freely when stirred. A pair of shorts should dye nicely in a five-gallon bucket, though something larger and heavier might require a larger container. I do recommend the far easier washing machine method if your washing machine will allow for it.

Dyeing in your washing machine will not harm it or stain any clothing that is later washed in it, as long as you wipe out any dye spatters above the water line with a damp cloth or paper towel, and do your after-dyeing washout of the excess unattached dye from your shorts in the same washing machine, allowing plenty of opportunity for the excess dye to be cleaned away. Some dyers like to run a load of towels with bleach immediately after dyeing in the machine, but I have not found this to be necessary. On one washing machine, I did see some staining of white sections with the turquoise dye only (Procion Turquoise MX-G, popular in itself and as an ingredient in many pre-mixed Procion dye colors), but this did not alter the color of other clothing that I later washed in the same machine.

A very important key in dyeing dark black is to use a lot more dye powder than you would use for a paler color. This is true for any class of dye and any type of fiber. You should use twice as much black dye for a rich deep black as you would use for a merely dark color, and you should use twice as much dye powder for a dark shade as you would use for a medium shade, so a good general rule of thumb is to use four times as much dye, when you are dyeing anything black. (See "How much Procion MX dye should I use?".)

Another important detail is that the thread with which your shorts were sewn together is almost certainly made of polyester, which means that it will remain undyed. Look carefully at your shorts to decide whether they will look okay in black, if the stitching at the seams is still the original caramel color. Although it is possible to dye polyester, doing so requires special dyes, smelly chemicals, and an hour's worth of cooking on top of the stove, using a dyeing pot you don't plan to reuse for food, so it's really not worth trying to do so.

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

Posted: Tuesday - August 16, 2011 at 10:25 AM

Follow this blog on twitter here.
Tweet

getBlogName(); > getCategoryName("<$EntryCategoryFolder$>"); >

Is it possible to dye clothing made of cupro?

> >