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Monday, June 30, 2008
Do you have to let the Procion dye dry before you wash it, or iron it?
Sunday, June 29, 2008
How safe are modern dyes, compared to ancient ones?
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 3, 2008.]
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Why can't fiber reactive dyes be made more than a couple of days in advance?
Friday, June 27, 2008
Is it safe to use cooking utensils for cooking once they have been used to dye fabrics?
Do you have to let the Procion dye dry before you wash it, or iron it?
Name:
Ana
Message: I hope this is not answered, I looked. Using Procion, after you rinse with cold water, do you let it dry? or can you put in automatically into the washer to wash. I heard to let it dry, iron, and then wash. Is this method just for LWI?
There is no need to dry the dyed items before washing them, but you can do it, if for some reason it's more convenient. It won't do any harm, but it is completely unnecessary. The same is true of using the iron. You must use an iron to heat-set fabric paints, such as Dye-na-Flow, but ironing does nothing for Procion type dye, and is completely unnecessary, besides.
The only thing ironing accomplishes is to smooth wrinkles out of the fabric, but that's better done after the fabric has been washed out, so you don't risk getting excess dye on anything. There's no need to risk getting excess dye on your ironing board.
Procion MX dyes do not need to be heat-set. They do need to be allowed to react with the fabric, in the presence of soda ash, for a certain amount of time, ranging from a few hours to a day or two. While the dyes are reacting with the fiber, they need to be in a warm place, 70°F or warmer, so that the chemical reaction between dye and fiber can proceed.
I always let my tie-dyed items react with the dye overnight in a warm place, then take them, still damp with dye, use blunt-ended scissors to remove the ties, and immediately dump them all in the washing machine together for a cold-water rinse. After that, I run the washer again, washing the stuff in HOT water to get out the unattached excess dye. I can do this because leaving the stuff longer than necessary to react means that there will be no unreacted dye to permanently stain other garments.
If you have hard water, use water softener powder (sodium hexametaphosphate) in your dye mixtures, and also in the wash water. The minerals in hard water can make it hard to wash out Procion dyes.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
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Message: I hope this is not answered, I looked. Using Procion, after you rinse with cold water, do you let it dry? or can you put in automatically into the washer to wash. I heard to let it dry, iron, and then wash. Is this method just for LWI?
There is no need to dry the dyed items before washing them, but you can do it, if for some reason it's more convenient. It won't do any harm, but it is completely unnecessary. The same is true of using the iron. You must use an iron to heat-set fabric paints, such as Dye-na-Flow, but ironing does nothing for Procion type dye, and is completely unnecessary, besides.
The only thing ironing accomplishes is to smooth wrinkles out of the fabric, but that's better done after the fabric has been washed out, so you don't risk getting excess dye on anything. There's no need to risk getting excess dye on your ironing board.
Procion MX dyes do not need to be heat-set. They do need to be allowed to react with the fabric, in the presence of soda ash, for a certain amount of time, ranging from a few hours to a day or two. While the dyes are reacting with the fiber, they need to be in a warm place, 70°F or warmer, so that the chemical reaction between dye and fiber can proceed.
I always let my tie-dyed items react with the dye overnight in a warm place, then take them, still damp with dye, use blunt-ended scissors to remove the ties, and immediately dump them all in the washing machine together for a cold-water rinse. After that, I run the washer again, washing the stuff in HOT water to get out the unattached excess dye. I can do this because leaving the stuff longer than necessary to react means that there will be no unreacted dye to permanently stain other garments.
If you have hard water, use water softener powder (sodium hexametaphosphate) in your dye mixtures, and also in the wash water. The minerals in hard water can make it hard to wash out Procion dyes.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
Sunday, June 29, 2008
How safe are modern dyes, compared to ancient ones?
How safe are modern dyes, compared to ancient
ones?
Some modern dyes are dangerous, while others are quite safe. Most but not all ancient dyes require heavy metal mordants, which are more toxic than dyes.
Natural dyes generally require the use of a mordant such as alum, copper, iron, tin, or chrome. Alum is the least hazardous of these, often seen descirbed as "food grade" alum, but the fatal dose of alum for an adult is 30 gram (one ounce), while that for a child is correspondingly much less. The fatal dose of alum for a baby might be as little as one gram. The other mordants, including copper and iron, can be fatal to adults in doses as low as one teaspoon or less, and the chrome mordant (potassium dichromate) is a significant human carcinogen.
One of the few natural dyes that does not require a mordant is indigo, a natural vat dye, which can be prepared from some fifty different species of plants that grow around the world. It is not safe for a child to use because caustic chemicals such as lye are necessary to dissolve it in the dyebath in order to apply it to fabric. However, these chemicals are safe once their pH has been neutralized. The ancient Tyrian purple, prepared from vast quantities of shellfish, is chemically very closely related to indigo.
A very small number of natural dyes do not require any toxic chemicals to apply. One of these is turmeric, the spice, which is used by monks in Tibet to dye their robes. Because turmeric fades quickly in the light, they must redye their robes every year. Walnut hulls are another good natural dye that can be used without any mordant.
Most modern synthetic dyes do not require the use of mordants, so they do not present the risk of deaths by poisoning. However, some are based on the carcinogenic chemicals benzidine or o-dianisidine. Benzidine-based direct dyes were widely used in all-purpose dyes for decades, the kinds of fabric dyes which are sold in grocery stores nearly everywhere, up through the 1970s, and some o-dianisidine based dyes are still available elsewhere. These dyes can cause bladder cancer or other cancers if workers absorb large enough amounts of them, and the development of the cancers can be delayed by twenty years or more after the exposure. Dyes based on benzidine and o-dianisidine are much less easy to buy in local stores now.
The fiber reactive dyes found in tie-dye kits are quite safe. None of them are based on benzidine or o-dianisidine. Since they do not require mordants, they are much safer for children to use than most natural dyes. The washing soda (also known as soda ash) that is used to set fiber reactive dyes is only a mild irritant, which is found in most laundry detergents.
Unlike the mordants used with natural dyes, the dye in currently-used tie-die kits have caused no fatalities. The only health problems seen with fiber reactive dyes are allergies and asthma that can result from repeatedly breathing the dye powder. This is less likely to happen at home, but it is possible if you do a lot of dyeing, so you should be careful to always wear a dust mask when dissolving dye powders, in order to reduce your risk. It is a significant problem in industrial situations in which workers are regularly exposed to dusts in the air. Once a worker has developed an allergy to a specific type of fiber reactive dye, he or she must not work with that dye ever again, though it is generally okay for them to wear clothing colored with that dye.
It is important to avoid unnecessary exposures to even safe household chemicals, in case some problem is discovered in the future which is not currently known. When using dyes, always wear gloves, and wear breathing protection as needed. Never allow children unsupervised access to dyes or other household chemicals. When using toxic chemicals such as household chlorine bleach, be careful to avoid getting any on your skin, and use good ventilation.
Also see:
About Natural Dyes
What are the safest dyes to use? What kinds of dyes are too unsafe to use?
Is it safe to eat or breathe fiber reactive dyes?
Aren't natural dyes safer than synthetic dyes?
Is all-purpose dye safe to use? Is it safer than fiber reactive dye?
Some modern dyes are dangerous, while others are quite safe. Most but not all ancient dyes require heavy metal mordants, which are more toxic than dyes.
Natural dyes generally require the use of a mordant such as alum, copper, iron, tin, or chrome. Alum is the least hazardous of these, often seen descirbed as "food grade" alum, but the fatal dose of alum for an adult is 30 gram (one ounce), while that for a child is correspondingly much less. The fatal dose of alum for a baby might be as little as one gram. The other mordants, including copper and iron, can be fatal to adults in doses as low as one teaspoon or less, and the chrome mordant (potassium dichromate) is a significant human carcinogen.
One of the few natural dyes that does not require a mordant is indigo, a natural vat dye, which can be prepared from some fifty different species of plants that grow around the world. It is not safe for a child to use because caustic chemicals such as lye are necessary to dissolve it in the dyebath in order to apply it to fabric. However, these chemicals are safe once their pH has been neutralized. The ancient Tyrian purple, prepared from vast quantities of shellfish, is chemically very closely related to indigo.
A very small number of natural dyes do not require any toxic chemicals to apply. One of these is turmeric, the spice, which is used by monks in Tibet to dye their robes. Because turmeric fades quickly in the light, they must redye their robes every year. Walnut hulls are another good natural dye that can be used without any mordant.
Most modern synthetic dyes do not require the use of mordants, so they do not present the risk of deaths by poisoning. However, some are based on the carcinogenic chemicals benzidine or o-dianisidine. Benzidine-based direct dyes were widely used in all-purpose dyes for decades, the kinds of fabric dyes which are sold in grocery stores nearly everywhere, up through the 1970s, and some o-dianisidine based dyes are still available elsewhere. These dyes can cause bladder cancer or other cancers if workers absorb large enough amounts of them, and the development of the cancers can be delayed by twenty years or more after the exposure. Dyes based on benzidine and o-dianisidine are much less easy to buy in local stores now.
The fiber reactive dyes found in tie-dye kits are quite safe. None of them are based on benzidine or o-dianisidine. Since they do not require mordants, they are much safer for children to use than most natural dyes. The washing soda (also known as soda ash) that is used to set fiber reactive dyes is only a mild irritant, which is found in most laundry detergents.
Unlike the mordants used with natural dyes, the dye in currently-used tie-die kits have caused no fatalities. The only health problems seen with fiber reactive dyes are allergies and asthma that can result from repeatedly breathing the dye powder. This is less likely to happen at home, but it is possible if you do a lot of dyeing, so you should be careful to always wear a dust mask when dissolving dye powders, in order to reduce your risk. It is a significant problem in industrial situations in which workers are regularly exposed to dusts in the air. Once a worker has developed an allergy to a specific type of fiber reactive dye, he or she must not work with that dye ever again, though it is generally okay for them to wear clothing colored with that dye.
It is important to avoid unnecessary exposures to even safe household chemicals, in case some problem is discovered in the future which is not currently known. When using dyes, always wear gloves, and wear breathing protection as needed. Never allow children unsupervised access to dyes or other household chemicals. When using toxic chemicals such as household chlorine bleach, be careful to avoid getting any on your skin, and use good ventilation.
Also see:
About Natural Dyes
What are the safest dyes to use? What kinds of dyes are too unsafe to use?
Is it safe to eat or breathe fiber reactive dyes?
Aren't natural dyes safer than synthetic dyes?
Is all-purpose dye safe to use? Is it safer than fiber reactive dye?
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 3, 2008.]
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Why can't fiber reactive dyes be made more than a couple of days in advance?
Why can't fiber reactive dyes be made more than a couple of days
in advance? I think it has something to do with the fact that the fiber reactive
dyes are an organic
compound.
It has nothing to do with the fact that they are organic compounds. Anything that contain carbon is an organic compound! What it all has to do with is the reactivity of the dyes. They are not only capable of reacting with cellulose; they can also react with water (hydrolyze). Once they have reacted, they cannot react again, so they become useless for dyeing cotton.
It's not entirely true that you can't dissolve the dyes more than a couple of days in advance, though. That's just a good rule to follow so that you don't mix the dyes up weeks in advance and then find that they don't work. The fastest-to-react dyes are the dichlorotriazine dyes, which are known as Procion MX dyes. If you dissolve them in pH-balanced water, they will stay good for at least a week or two at room temperature, and weeks longer than that if they are stored in the refrigerator (since cooler temperatures reduce the reaction rate).
However, if the dyes have soda ash already mixed in with the dye, then you should use them within half an hour or so of mixing the dyes with water, because the high pH of the sodium carbonate encourages the dyes to hydrolyze quickly. Once even a drop of soda ash gets into the dye solutions, they will not last even half a day. Some tie-dye kits contain the soda ash in a separate bag to be used as a presoak, but others contain it already mixed in with the dye.
The soda ash (sodium carbonate) is required to activate the cellulose in the cotton so that it can attack the dye. See the drawings of the reactions in the links below.
Other types of fiber reactive dye are less quick to react than the dichlorotriazines, so they can be stored for months after dissolving them in water. Some can even be purchased already dissolved in water, but many of these require such high heat to react that they are usually steamed to set them in the fabric. These include the vinyl sulfones (Remazol dyes), monchlorotriazines (Procion H dyes), and monofluorotriazines (Cibacron F dyes). See About Fiber Reactive Dyes for more information.
The dyes are actually made a year or more before they are used. They are made in the dye factory. What you should not do more than a week or two before use is dissolve the dyes in water. Even if the dyes are not dissolved in water, though, they will still go bad a year or two after purchase, due to gradually hydrolyzing in the jars. They will go bad very quickly if stored in a hot place. If you leave the tie-dye kit in your car with the windows rolled up in the sun, they will hydrolyze ("go bad") in just one day.
See also:
Chemical reaction for a dichlorotriazine (fiber reactive) dye with cellulose
I'm wondering if you could explain the chemistry behind why cotton can't be dyed at an acidic pH
Refrigerating dyes?
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 3, 2008.]
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It has nothing to do with the fact that they are organic compounds. Anything that contain carbon is an organic compound! What it all has to do with is the reactivity of the dyes. They are not only capable of reacting with cellulose; they can also react with water (hydrolyze). Once they have reacted, they cannot react again, so they become useless for dyeing cotton.
It's not entirely true that you can't dissolve the dyes more than a couple of days in advance, though. That's just a good rule to follow so that you don't mix the dyes up weeks in advance and then find that they don't work. The fastest-to-react dyes are the dichlorotriazine dyes, which are known as Procion MX dyes. If you dissolve them in pH-balanced water, they will stay good for at least a week or two at room temperature, and weeks longer than that if they are stored in the refrigerator (since cooler temperatures reduce the reaction rate).
However, if the dyes have soda ash already mixed in with the dye, then you should use them within half an hour or so of mixing the dyes with water, because the high pH of the sodium carbonate encourages the dyes to hydrolyze quickly. Once even a drop of soda ash gets into the dye solutions, they will not last even half a day. Some tie-dye kits contain the soda ash in a separate bag to be used as a presoak, but others contain it already mixed in with the dye.
The soda ash (sodium carbonate) is required to activate the cellulose in the cotton so that it can attack the dye. See the drawings of the reactions in the links below.
Other types of fiber reactive dye are less quick to react than the dichlorotriazines, so they can be stored for months after dissolving them in water. Some can even be purchased already dissolved in water, but many of these require such high heat to react that they are usually steamed to set them in the fabric. These include the vinyl sulfones (Remazol dyes), monchlorotriazines (Procion H dyes), and monofluorotriazines (Cibacron F dyes). See About Fiber Reactive Dyes for more information.
The dyes are actually made a year or more before they are used. They are made in the dye factory. What you should not do more than a week or two before use is dissolve the dyes in water. Even if the dyes are not dissolved in water, though, they will still go bad a year or two after purchase, due to gradually hydrolyzing in the jars. They will go bad very quickly if stored in a hot place. If you leave the tie-dye kit in your car with the windows rolled up in the sun, they will hydrolyze ("go bad") in just one day.
See also:
Chemical reaction for a dichlorotriazine (fiber reactive) dye with cellulose
I'm wondering if you could explain the chemistry behind why cotton can't be dyed at an acidic pH
Refrigerating dyes?
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 3, 2008.]
Friday, June 27, 2008
Is it safe to use cooking utensils for cooking once they have been used to dye fabrics?
Is it safe to use cooking utensils for cooking once they have been
used to dye
fabrics?
I just bought some fabric dye and the instruction calls for simmering the fabric for 20 minutes and dye for an hour. I really like that pot for cooking; however, it is the only pot I have that is big enough for dying fabrics.
All professional dyers will tell you to never reuse a dyepot for food. Dyes other than food coloring are not considered safe for containers used for food preparation. The fabric dyes you can buy in the grocery store have not been tested to be sure that they will not cause cancer or other health problems, so it is important to avoid eating anything that may have been contaminated with dye. You can put fabric into glass canning jars and heat those in a pot of water without contaminating your pot, though.
If you buy a cool water dye, such as Procion MX dye, you can apply it in a bucket without needing to heat it at all. The results are much better if you use this kind of dye than if you use the hot water dye that you bought, anyway. All-purpose dye works best if you boil the fabric in the dye, but even then it fades quickly and bleeds badly in the laundry. Procion MX dyes can be found in Dylon Cool Water Dye and in Tulip One Step Fashion Dye, in addition to the Jacquard Procion MX dyes found in good tie-dye kits and a few very good crafts stores.
For more information, see:
Is all-purpose dye safe to use? Is it safer than fiber reactive dye?
Is it safe to eat or breathe fiber reactive dyes?
Hazards from dyes and chemicals in textile finishing: a brief guide for employees [PDF]
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on May 27, 2008.]
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Where can you buy tie dye in Canada? Which stores?
Two of the best sources in Canada for good dyes for tie-dyeing are Maiwa Handprints, in Vancouver, and G&S Dye, in Toronto. They have stores in those cities, and they will also sell by mail-order to any location in Canada. See my page listing Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World.
Look for Procion MX dye, which is fiber reactive dye, the type of dye used in the best tie-dyeing. Do not use a hot water dye, such as Rit All-purpose dye or Tintex Easy Fabric Dye, because they will fade almost immediately. The colors in the shirts you dye with Procion Dyes will last for years.
Most crafts stores sell good tie-dye kits. Look for a tie-dye kit made by Jacquard, Dylon, Rainbow Rock, or Tulip. Sometimes you can find a good tie-dye kit even in a larger store such as WalMart, but often all they sell is Rit dye, which does not work well for making tie-dyed cotton shirts.
To look for additional stores that sell Procion MX dyes in Canada, try Jacquard Products' store locator.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 3, 2008.]
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
How can I make this tie-dyed American flag shirt for the fourth of July?
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Where can I buy Organic Powdered Dye?
Monday, June 23, 2008
Can I soak my fabic in cold fix to dye without it?
Sunday, June 22, 2008
How long should I let the treated fabric sit in Ritz dye remover, before simply returning it to the store?
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Do dylon fabric dyes work on nylon dresses?
Friday, June 20, 2008
Removing red t-shirt dye from clothes?
To remove unwanted dye transfers, use HOT water. The dye is less attracted to the fiber when it is hot.
If washing in hot water doesn't work, try soaking it in hot water. If that doesn't work, then you can buy some Rit Color Remover and use it in the washing machine, but that's more trouble and bears a risk of removing some of the original color. The khaki shorts will probably retain their color in the Rit Color Remover, but the turquoise top might lose its color.
Update: "Wow, the hot water worked like a charm, of course washing both separately I added a little detergent and some cascade, soaked in the hot water for 30 minutes and both garments look like new, thanks so much."
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 8, 2008.]
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Where do you get the dyes for tie dying?
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Tye dye—how to make it last and not bleed out?
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Can I dye a viscose/spandex dress with Rit dye?
Monday, June 16, 2008
How can I dye white craft felt, the kind like you can buy for about thirty cents at Walmart?
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Can I use Rit dye on a Xbox 360 controller?
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Where can I get the best tie-dye kit? How much will it cost?
Friday, June 13, 2008
I love really dense rich colours... What would be the best colours for me to buy in order to mix these colours?
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Can I use a 50% cotton and 50% polyester?
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Is there a way to make shoe dye more permanent on polyester satin shoes?
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Is it possible to tie-dye leggings to look like Hulk Hogan's?
Monday, June 09, 2008
looking for blank hoodies for big and tall men
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Are Reactive Dyes eco-friendly?
Saturday, June 07, 2008
I'd like to dye a tangerine skirt to a rust or brick red. What color do you suggest I add to the fabric?
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Can I use fabric crayons to redye where the armpits of a polyester dress have changed from navy blue to pink?
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
I have a pair of trousers that are 55% polyester & 45% wool - are they possible to dye and if so what would you recommend?
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
how to safely lighten the color from natural fiber rope, hemp and jute specifically
Monday, June 02, 2008
How important is the kelp for tie-dyeing?
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Is there a way to do dip dye/tie dye like the way it is done with Rit?
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I just bought some fabric dye and the instruction calls for simmering the fabric for 20 minutes and dye for an hour. I really like that pot for cooking; however, it is the only pot I have that is big enough for dying fabrics.
All professional dyers will tell you to never reuse a dyepot for food. Dyes other than food coloring are not considered safe for containers used for food preparation. The fabric dyes you can buy in the grocery store have not been tested to be sure that they will not cause cancer or other health problems, so it is important to avoid eating anything that may have been contaminated with dye. You can put fabric into glass canning jars and heat those in a pot of water without contaminating your pot, though.
If you buy a cool water dye, such as Procion MX dye, you can apply it in a bucket without needing to heat it at all. The results are much better if you use this kind of dye than if you use the hot water dye that you bought, anyway. All-purpose dye works best if you boil the fabric in the dye, but even then it fades quickly and bleeds badly in the laundry. Procion MX dyes can be found in Dylon Cool Water Dye and in Tulip One Step Fashion Dye, in addition to the Jacquard Procion MX dyes found in good tie-dye kits and a few very good crafts stores.
For more information, see:
Is all-purpose dye safe to use? Is it safer than fiber reactive dye?
Is it safe to eat or breathe fiber reactive dyes?
Hazards from dyes and chemicals in textile finishing: a brief guide for employees [PDF]
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on May 27, 2008.]
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Where can you buy tie dye in Canada? Which stores?
Where can you buy tie dye in Canada? Which stores?
—ADVERTISEMENT—
Two of the best sources in Canada for good dyes for tie-dyeing are Maiwa Handprints, in Vancouver, and G&S Dye, in Toronto. They have stores in those cities, and they will also sell by mail-order to any location in Canada. See my page listing Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World.
Look for Procion MX dye, which is fiber reactive dye, the type of dye used in the best tie-dyeing. Do not use a hot water dye, such as Rit All-purpose dye or Tintex Easy Fabric Dye, because they will fade almost immediately. The colors in the shirts you dye with Procion Dyes will last for years.
Most crafts stores sell good tie-dye kits. Look for a tie-dye kit made by Jacquard, Dylon, Rainbow Rock, or Tulip. Sometimes you can find a good tie-dye kit even in a larger store such as WalMart, but often all they sell is Rit dye, which does not work well for making tie-dyed cotton shirts.
To look for additional stores that sell Procion MX dyes in Canada, try Jacquard Products' store locator.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 3, 2008.]
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
How can I make this tie-dyed American flag shirt for the fourth of July?
How can I make this tie-dyed Amrican flag shirt for the fourth of
July?
You will need to get either a good fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye, or a good fabric paint, such as Dye-na-flow, Setacolor, or Dharma Pigment Dye. Don't use Rit dye or any other brand of all-purpose dye, because if you do, the bleeding of the red stripes will make the whole shirt turn pink.
Tulip One Step Fabric Dye in blue and red will work well, because it is a fiber reactive dye. (You can buy this dye from a crafts store or a sewing store.) So will Jacquard Procion dye, or Dylon Cold Water dye. My favorite choice is to mail-order Procion MX dyes, along with the soda ash to set the dye.
Dharma Trading Company has instructions on their site for how to use fabric paint to make an American flag t-shirt.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
—ADVERTISEMENT—
You will need to get either a good fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye, or a good fabric paint, such as Dye-na-flow, Setacolor, or Dharma Pigment Dye. Don't use Rit dye or any other brand of all-purpose dye, because if you do, the bleeding of the red stripes will make the whole shirt turn pink.
Tulip One Step Fabric Dye in blue and red will work well, because it is a fiber reactive dye. (You can buy this dye from a crafts store or a sewing store.) So will Jacquard Procion dye, or Dylon Cold Water dye. My favorite choice is to mail-order Procion MX dyes, along with the soda ash to set the dye.
Dharma Trading Company has instructions on their site for how to use fabric paint to make an American flag t-shirt.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Where can I buy Organic Powdered Dye?
Where can I buy Organic Powdered
Dye?
What is a good substitute for Organic Powdered Dye? I need Organic Powdered Dye and I cannot find it ANYWHERE!!
Most dyes are organic dyes. "Organic" does not mean "natural," in chemistry. It only means that the molecule contains carbon. There are very few dyes which are not organic; these would be the mineral dyes, such as iron buff. All other dyes are carbon-based and therefore organic.
You can buy organic dye powder in most grocery stores, in the form of Rit all-purpose dye, which contains direct dyes for cellulose fibers such as cotton, mixed with acid dyes for protein fibers such as wool, plus sodium chloride (which comprises the largest portion of the powder), and anionic and nonionic surfactants to aid dye dispersal.
You can also order different kinds of dyes from a good dye supplier. Dye suppliers sell acid dyes, direct dyes, vat dyes, fiber reactive dyes, naphthol dyes, etc. All of these dyes are organic dyes, and most are available in powered form.
If what you really want is natural dye, not organic dye, then you should look at a supplier of natural dyes, such as Earthues or Aurora Silk, both of which are listed on the page Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World. Most natural dyes are also organic dyes, of course, just like synthetic dyes, and most are available in powdered form.
If you are looking for dye to make a colored smoke bomb, not just any organic dye will work. Many dyes will burn up, adding no color to your smoke. You can buy smoke dyes from a company called Skylighter.com. Be careful that no one breathes any of the colored smoke, because the dyes are highly unlikely to be safe for ingestion by humans in any form, including breathing.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
—ADVERTISEMENTS—
What is a good substitute for Organic Powdered Dye? I need Organic Powdered Dye and I cannot find it ANYWHERE!!
Most dyes are organic dyes. "Organic" does not mean "natural," in chemistry. It only means that the molecule contains carbon. There are very few dyes which are not organic; these would be the mineral dyes, such as iron buff. All other dyes are carbon-based and therefore organic.
You can buy organic dye powder in most grocery stores, in the form of Rit all-purpose dye, which contains direct dyes for cellulose fibers such as cotton, mixed with acid dyes for protein fibers such as wool, plus sodium chloride (which comprises the largest portion of the powder), and anionic and nonionic surfactants to aid dye dispersal.
You can also order different kinds of dyes from a good dye supplier. Dye suppliers sell acid dyes, direct dyes, vat dyes, fiber reactive dyes, naphthol dyes, etc. All of these dyes are organic dyes, and most are available in powered form.
If what you really want is natural dye, not organic dye, then you should look at a supplier of natural dyes, such as Earthues or Aurora Silk, both of which are listed on the page Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World. Most natural dyes are also organic dyes, of course, just like synthetic dyes, and most are available in powdered form.
If you are looking for dye to make a colored smoke bomb, not just any organic dye will work. Many dyes will burn up, adding no color to your smoke. You can buy smoke dyes from a company called Skylighter.com. Be careful that no one breathes any of the colored smoke, because the dyes are highly unlikely to be safe for ingestion by humans in any form, including breathing.
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[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
Monday, June 23, 2008
Can I soak my fabic in cold fix to dye without it?
I have limited dylon cold fix, but plenty of dye. if I can soak
with cold fix, what's the ratio of water to cold
fix?
Dylon Cold Fix is sodium carbonate, also known as soda ash or washing soda. It's easy to buy sodium carbonate locally. Look for "pH Up" or "pH Increaser" at a swimming pool supplier or in the swimming pool section of a hardware store or Walmart. You can also buy it labeled "washing soda" in the laundry section of the grocery store. (If you get washing soda, make sure that the label promises that it is free of dyes and additives. Arm & Hammer washing soda is fine.)
I usually use one cup of sodium carbonate per gallon of water as a presoak for tie-dyeing, but you can get by with half as much. The goal is to use enough to bring the pH up to 10 or 11, assuming that you are using a fiber reactive dye such as Dylon Cold Dye. (Sometimes people try to use it for Rit all-purpose dye , but it does not work with that kind of dye.)
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Soda AshDylon Cold Fix is sodium carbonate, also known as soda ash or washing soda. It's easy to buy sodium carbonate locally. Look for "pH Up" or "pH Increaser" at a swimming pool supplier or in the swimming pool section of a hardware store or Walmart. You can also buy it labeled "washing soda" in the laundry section of the grocery store. (If you get washing soda, make sure that the label promises that it is free of dyes and additives. Arm & Hammer washing soda is fine.)
I usually use one cup of sodium carbonate per gallon of water as a presoak for tie-dyeing, but you can get by with half as much. The goal is to use enough to bring the pH up to 10 or 11, assuming that you are using a fiber reactive dye such as Dylon Cold Dye. (Sometimes people try to use it for Rit all-purpose dye , but it does not work with that kind of dye.)
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[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
Sunday, June 22, 2008
How long should I let the treated fabric sit in Ritz dye remover, before simply returning it to the store?
How long should I let the treated fabric sit in Ritz dye remover, before simply returning it to the
store?
Rit Color Remover Removes Dyes
If you've used Rit Color Remover (not Ritz!) on it, you probably should not return either the fabric or the chemical to the store, even if it did not work.
Rit Color Remover works much better if you cook your fabric with it, in a very large non-aluminum cooking pot on top of the stove. It will not work if you just soak your fabric in it at room temperature. Sometimes it works in very hot tap water, but not always. It is easiest to use in the washing machine, but the water there does not get hot enough for maximum effectiveness.
Some dyes are removed very well by Rit Color Remover, while other dyes will remain untouched no matter what you do to them. This is not because the Rit Color Remover is defective, but just because not all dyes are dischargeable. The one way to know whether it will work on something you've got is to try it.
Here are the instructions for using Rit Color Remover:
For more information, see What chemicals can be used to remove dye?.
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[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
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If you've used Rit Color Remover (not Ritz!) on it, you probably should not return either the fabric or the chemical to the store, even if it did not work.
Rit Color Remover works much better if you cook your fabric with it, in a very large non-aluminum cooking pot on top of the stove. It will not work if you just soak your fabric in it at room temperature. Sometimes it works in very hot tap water, but not always. It is easiest to use in the washing machine, but the water there does not get hot enough for maximum effectiveness.
Some dyes are removed very well by Rit Color Remover, while other dyes will remain untouched no matter what you do to them. This is not because the Rit Color Remover is defective, but just because not all dyes are dischargeable. The one way to know whether it will work on something you've got is to try it.
Here are the instructions for using Rit Color Remover:
"Stove-top method. Wash items as usual. Do not dry. Fill large stainless steel or porcelain enamel pot (not aluminum or non-stick) with water, allowing room for items. Heat water to simmer [190°F or 87°C]. Carefully add Color Remover, pouring just above water level. (AVOID BREATHING DUST. USE WITH ADEQUATE VENTILATION.) Stir to dissolve thoroughly. Carefully add wet items (avoid crowding); stir continuously with a long-handled spoon or stick, 10 to 30 minutes so color will be evenly removed. DO NOT BOIL. Carefully drain solution into sink. Using rubber gloves, thoroughly rinse items, first in hot water, then in warm water (RINSING IMMEDIATELY IN COLD WATER MAY SET CREASES). Squeeze gently to remove excess water. Rewash items with detergent."
For more information, see What chemicals can be used to remove dye?.
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[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Do dylon fabric dyes work on nylon dresses?
Do dylon fabric dyes work on nylon
dresses?
Dylon makes several different kinds of dyes. Some of them will work on nylon, but others will not.
Nylon is a kind of polyamide, which means that it can be dyed with acid dyes, just like wool. You can buy special acid dyes that work especially well on nylon. Don't be alarmed by the name: they are called acid dyes only because they are used with a mild acid, such as vinegar. The best acid dyes for nylon are the Lanaset dyes, premetalized acid dyes, or the WashFast Acid dyes sold in the US by PRO Chemical & Dye.
You can also use all-purpose dyes, such as Dylon Multi-Purpose dye, which is different from other Dylon dyes. Other brands of all-purpose dye include Rit Tint and Dye and Tintex Easy Fabric Dye. All-purpose dyes are a mixture of acid dyes, for wool and nylon, with direct dyes, for cotton and rayon. In any case, nylon, unlike cotton, needs some acid to take up the dye. Use distilled white vinegar, or any vinegar you have on hand which is 5% acidity (the standard strength). If you are dyeing in one gallon (4 liters) of water, add seven tablespoons (100 ml) of vinegar; if you are dyeing in a twenty gallon washing machine load, use 5 cups or 1.25 liters of vinegar. Never add vinegar when dyeing cotton; vinegar is used only with nylon, as well as with protein fibers such as wool.
You cannot use any of the Dylon dyes that contain sodium carbonate (soda ash) or trisodium phosphate (TSP), because, while these additives allow cotton to take up dye, they fight with the vinegar you need to use with nylon. So, avoid the use of Dylon Machine Dye, Dylon Permanent Dye, and Dylon Hand Dye.
However, it will work fine to use Dylon Cold Dye, if you use vinegar instead of the Dylon Cold Fix that is required for dyeing cotton, and also, in spite of the name, use heat, as described on the page Fiber reactive dyes on protein fibers. Presoak nylon in vinegar before dyeing with Dylon Cold Dye, and then either simmer in the dye on the stovetop, or wrap in paper and steam for half an hour, just as you would steam vegetables.
For more information on dyeing nylon clothing, see How to dye nylon (polyamide).
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[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
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Dylon makes several different kinds of dyes. Some of them will work on nylon, but others will not.
Nylon is a kind of polyamide, which means that it can be dyed with acid dyes, just like wool. You can buy special acid dyes that work especially well on nylon. Don't be alarmed by the name: they are called acid dyes only because they are used with a mild acid, such as vinegar. The best acid dyes for nylon are the Lanaset dyes, premetalized acid dyes, or the WashFast Acid dyes sold in the US by PRO Chemical & Dye.
You can also use all-purpose dyes, such as Dylon Multi-Purpose dye, which is different from other Dylon dyes. Other brands of all-purpose dye include Rit Tint and Dye and Tintex Easy Fabric Dye. All-purpose dyes are a mixture of acid dyes, for wool and nylon, with direct dyes, for cotton and rayon. In any case, nylon, unlike cotton, needs some acid to take up the dye. Use distilled white vinegar, or any vinegar you have on hand which is 5% acidity (the standard strength). If you are dyeing in one gallon (4 liters) of water, add seven tablespoons (100 ml) of vinegar; if you are dyeing in a twenty gallon washing machine load, use 5 cups or 1.25 liters of vinegar. Never add vinegar when dyeing cotton; vinegar is used only with nylon, as well as with protein fibers such as wool.
You cannot use any of the Dylon dyes that contain sodium carbonate (soda ash) or trisodium phosphate (TSP), because, while these additives allow cotton to take up dye, they fight with the vinegar you need to use with nylon. So, avoid the use of Dylon Machine Dye, Dylon Permanent Dye, and Dylon Hand Dye.
However, it will work fine to use Dylon Cold Dye, if you use vinegar instead of the Dylon Cold Fix that is required for dyeing cotton, and also, in spite of the name, use heat, as described on the page Fiber reactive dyes on protein fibers. Presoak nylon in vinegar before dyeing with Dylon Cold Dye, and then either simmer in the dye on the stovetop, or wrap in paper and steam for half an hour, just as you would steam vegetables.
For more information on dyeing nylon clothing, see How to dye nylon (polyamide).
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[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 4, 2008.]
Friday, June 20, 2008
Removing red t-shirt dye from clothes?
"My daughter threw a wet red t-shirt on her dirty clothes pile.
Now a pair of khaki shorts and a turquoise shirt have red splotches all over
them, any suggestions of how to get this out appreciated. I have already soaked
in cold water and borax, no luck though, thanks."
To remove unwanted dye transfers, use HOT water. The dye is less attracted to the fiber when it is hot.
If washing in hot water doesn't work, try soaking it in hot water. If that doesn't work, then you can buy some Rit Color Remover and use it in the washing machine, but that's more trouble and bears a risk of removing some of the original color. The khaki shorts will probably retain their color in the Rit Color Remover, but the turquoise top might lose its color.
Update: "Wow, the hot water worked like a charm, of course washing both separately I added a little detergent and some cascade, soaked in the hot water for 30 minutes and both garments look like new, thanks so much."
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[This answer was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 8, 2008.]
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Where do you get the dyes for tie dying?
Where do you get the dyes for tie dying?...or how do you make the
dyes?
The best dyes for tie-dyeing can't be bought at the grocery store, but you can find them at any crafts store, and at most sewing stores, as well. Look for any good tie-dye kit. Good brands include Jacquard, Dylon, Tulip, and Rainbow Rock. Do NOT get the Rit all-purpose dye tie-dye kit, because the dyes will fade quickly and bleed badly in the laundry.
Good fiber reactive dyes, such as the Procion dye in the good brands of tie-dye kits, will last for years. Don't use all-purpose dye dye to tie-dye cotton, because it will start to fade the first time you wash it. All-purpose dye is also more expensive, because each box will dye only 4 to 8 ounces of fabric. The tie-dye kit will dye five to fifteen shirts, depending on which one you buy.
Homemade dyes are nice if you're not ever going to wash the shirts, but they will not last through regular washing. Tie-dye kits are better if you want to actually wear the shirts you make more than once or twice.
If you don't have a good crafts store near you, like Michael's or Hobby Lobby or Joann's, you can often find a good tie-dye kit at Walmart. Another option is to buy by mail-order. If you order your dyes from a good supplier like PRO Chemical & Dye or Dharma Trading Company, you won't be limited to the three colors found in most kits. There are more than a hundred different colors you can choose! Dharma Trading Company also sells cotton clothes that you can dye, not just t-shirts, but also dresses, dyeable swimsuits, pants, skirts, tablecloths, and so on.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 8, 2008.]
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The best dyes for tie-dyeing can't be bought at the grocery store, but you can find them at any crafts store, and at most sewing stores, as well. Look for any good tie-dye kit. Good brands include Jacquard, Dylon, Tulip, and Rainbow Rock. Do NOT get the Rit all-purpose dye tie-dye kit, because the dyes will fade quickly and bleed badly in the laundry.
Good fiber reactive dyes, such as the Procion dye in the good brands of tie-dye kits, will last for years. Don't use all-purpose dye dye to tie-dye cotton, because it will start to fade the first time you wash it. All-purpose dye is also more expensive, because each box will dye only 4 to 8 ounces of fabric. The tie-dye kit will dye five to fifteen shirts, depending on which one you buy.
Homemade dyes are nice if you're not ever going to wash the shirts, but they will not last through regular washing. Tie-dye kits are better if you want to actually wear the shirts you make more than once or twice.
If you don't have a good crafts store near you, like Michael's or Hobby Lobby or Joann's, you can often find a good tie-dye kit at Walmart. Another option is to buy by mail-order. If you order your dyes from a good supplier like PRO Chemical & Dye or Dharma Trading Company, you won't be limited to the three colors found in most kits. There are more than a hundred different colors you can choose! Dharma Trading Company also sells cotton clothes that you can dye, not just t-shirts, but also dresses, dyeable swimsuits, pants, skirts, tablecloths, and so on.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 8, 2008.]
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Tye dye—how to make it last and not bleed out?
Tye dye how to make it last and not bleed out?
I used ritz and my cool design has pretty much faded out. What are some preventative methods b/c I don't wanna mess up other clothes while they're in the washer and I'm gonna do a green and yellow design and I don't want the green to darken the yellow.
All-purpose dye, such as Rit® brand dye, is not the right dye for tie-dyeing. It always fades and bleeds in the laundry. If you are going to tie-dye cotton, use fiber reactive dye, instead, which is easier to use since it does not require boiling water, and it lasts a hundred times longer. Tie-dyes made with all-purpose dye on cotton always fade quickly, but tie-dyes made with fiber reactive dye will stay bright for years.
Clothes that are dyed with Rit dye are not supposed to be machine washed. Instead, you should hand wash them separately in cold water. Clothes dyed with Procion dye can be machine washed in hot water without bleeding at all. If you use Procion fiber reactive dye, you can wash tie-dyed items safely with other clothing, after the first few washings have remove excess unattached dye.
You can buy good fiber reactive dye at a crafts store or sewing store, if you get a good brand. Look for a tie-dye kit made by Jacquard, Dylon, Rainbow Rock, or Tulip. Do not buy a Rit tie-dye kit, because of the way the colors will bleed together when you wash it. If you can't buy Procion dye locally in a good tie-dye kit, buy it by mail-order. See the page below with links to dye sellers in many different countries.
You can "set" the color of all-purpose dye by treating it with a special commercial dye fixative called Retayne. Don't even try to use salt or vinegar, because neither one works at all on cotton or on synthetics. Only Retayne will work. Unfortunately, it won't keep the color from one part of your design from spoiling another part, because it is applied by immersing your dyed item in water. The all-purpose dye will bleed before the Retayne has a chance to work. Retayne only works for single-color tie-dyes.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
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I used ritz and my cool design has pretty much faded out. What are some preventative methods b/c I don't wanna mess up other clothes while they're in the washer and I'm gonna do a green and yellow design and I don't want the green to darken the yellow.
All-purpose dye, such as Rit® brand dye, is not the right dye for tie-dyeing. It always fades and bleeds in the laundry. If you are going to tie-dye cotton, use fiber reactive dye, instead, which is easier to use since it does not require boiling water, and it lasts a hundred times longer. Tie-dyes made with all-purpose dye on cotton always fade quickly, but tie-dyes made with fiber reactive dye will stay bright for years.
Clothes that are dyed with Rit dye are not supposed to be machine washed. Instead, you should hand wash them separately in cold water. Clothes dyed with Procion dye can be machine washed in hot water without bleeding at all. If you use Procion fiber reactive dye, you can wash tie-dyed items safely with other clothing, after the first few washings have remove excess unattached dye.
You can buy good fiber reactive dye at a crafts store or sewing store, if you get a good brand. Look for a tie-dye kit made by Jacquard, Dylon, Rainbow Rock, or Tulip. Do not buy a Rit tie-dye kit, because of the way the colors will bleed together when you wash it. If you can't buy Procion dye locally in a good tie-dye kit, buy it by mail-order. See the page below with links to dye sellers in many different countries.
You can "set" the color of all-purpose dye by treating it with a special commercial dye fixative called Retayne. Don't even try to use salt or vinegar, because neither one works at all on cotton or on synthetics. Only Retayne will work. Unfortunately, it won't keep the color from one part of your design from spoiling another part, because it is applied by immersing your dyed item in water. The all-purpose dye will bleed before the Retayne has a chance to work. Retayne only works for single-color tie-dyes.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Can I dye a viscose/spandex dress with Rit dye?
A dress I really like is 97% Viscose and 3% Spandex, but it's a
horrible coral color that wouldn't match my red hair, so I was wondering, if I
used a black Rit dye, would it be
ok?
No. Don't use all-purpose dye on anything that contains spandex, because all-purpose dye is a hot water dye and hot water is death to spandex. Either you will ruin your dress, or you will use inadequately hot water and end up with an ugly grey mess.
Instead, use a cool water fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. Fiber reactive dye works much better than all-purpose dye on viscose rayon. All-purpose dye fades quickly and bleeds badly in the laundry, but fiber reactive dye is more intense in color and lasts through years of washing. Viscose rayon is dyed just like cotton, with the same dyes, but it is much more fragile when wet, so you must treat it very gently.
You can find all-purpose dye almost anywhere, even grocery stores and pharmacies, but for a better dye you will have to look a little harder. You can buy fiber reactive dye in a crafts store or sewing store. Look for Dylon Cold Dye, Tulip One Step Fashion Dye, or Jacquard Procion dye, or get a tie-dye kit made by Jacquard, Dylon, Tulip, or Rainbow Rock. If you are in Australia, you can use Tintex Cold Dye, but don't use Tintex Hot Dye, and in North America don't use Tintex at all, because all of the Tintex dye available in North America is a hot water dye, unsuitable for your fiber blend. The best way to buy fiber reactive dye is to mail-order some Procion MX dye from one of the many companies listed on the page Sources of Dyeing Supplies Around the World.
If you use a good dye, you can easily change the color of a coral dress to black, but the stitching will remain the original color. Would this look okay on your dress? Ready-made clothing is sewn together with polyester thread, which cannot be dyed with ordinary dye, nor at a temperature that will not destroy spandex.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
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No. Don't use all-purpose dye on anything that contains spandex, because all-purpose dye is a hot water dye and hot water is death to spandex. Either you will ruin your dress, or you will use inadequately hot water and end up with an ugly grey mess.
Instead, use a cool water fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. Fiber reactive dye works much better than all-purpose dye on viscose rayon. All-purpose dye fades quickly and bleeds badly in the laundry, but fiber reactive dye is more intense in color and lasts through years of washing. Viscose rayon is dyed just like cotton, with the same dyes, but it is much more fragile when wet, so you must treat it very gently.
You can find all-purpose dye almost anywhere, even grocery stores and pharmacies, but for a better dye you will have to look a little harder. You can buy fiber reactive dye in a crafts store or sewing store. Look for Dylon Cold Dye, Tulip One Step Fashion Dye, or Jacquard Procion dye, or get a tie-dye kit made by Jacquard, Dylon, Tulip, or Rainbow Rock. If you are in Australia, you can use Tintex Cold Dye, but don't use Tintex Hot Dye, and in North America don't use Tintex at all, because all of the Tintex dye available in North America is a hot water dye, unsuitable for your fiber blend. The best way to buy fiber reactive dye is to mail-order some Procion MX dye from one of the many companies listed on the page Sources of Dyeing Supplies Around the World.
If you use a good dye, you can easily change the color of a coral dress to black, but the stitching will remain the original color. Would this look okay on your dress? Ready-made clothing is sewn together with polyester thread, which cannot be dyed with ordinary dye, nor at a temperature that will not destroy spandex.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
Monday, June 16, 2008
How can I dye white craft felt, the kind like you can buy for about thirty cents at Walmart?
How can I dye white craft felt, the kind like you can buy for
about thirty cents at
Walmart?
Since the cheap craft felt is made out of 100% polyester, you cannot use any ordinary fabric dye. Polyester can be dyed only with disperse dye. Disperse dye for immersion dyeing in water is not sold at your local store, but must be purchased by mail-order from a company such as PRO Chemical & Dye.
However, you can use disperse dye fabric crayons, which are widely available. Do not confuse fabric crayons with wax crayons! You cannot use ordinary crayons for this, only the special fabric crayons. Your local sewing store should sell fabric crayons. They look just like ordinary crayons; be careful not to let them get mixed up.
To use disperse dye fabric crayons, use them to draw designs on paper, just as you would use ordinary wax crayons, then place the paper design face-down on the white polyester felt. Put plain paper or rags on top to protect your iron, and put a lot of newspaper underneath to protect your ironing board. Set your iron to "hot" or "cotton", and press the design onto the fabric while moving the iron around so that you do not burn the fabric, as directed on the package of fabric crayons. The fabric crayon marks look dull on the paper, but become bright when transferred to the polyester. See "Iron-on Fabric Crayons for Synthetic Fibers" for an example.
Another alternative is to use a fabric paint that is advertised as being able to work on polyester, such as Jacquard's Dye-Na-Flow or Dharma Pigment Dyes. These are thin paints which mimic the feel of dye.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
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Since the cheap craft felt is made out of 100% polyester, you cannot use any ordinary fabric dye. Polyester can be dyed only with disperse dye. Disperse dye for immersion dyeing in water is not sold at your local store, but must be purchased by mail-order from a company such as PRO Chemical & Dye.
However, you can use disperse dye fabric crayons, which are widely available. Do not confuse fabric crayons with wax crayons! You cannot use ordinary crayons for this, only the special fabric crayons. Your local sewing store should sell fabric crayons. They look just like ordinary crayons; be careful not to let them get mixed up.
To use disperse dye fabric crayons, use them to draw designs on paper, just as you would use ordinary wax crayons, then place the paper design face-down on the white polyester felt. Put plain paper or rags on top to protect your iron, and put a lot of newspaper underneath to protect your ironing board. Set your iron to "hot" or "cotton", and press the design onto the fabric while moving the iron around so that you do not burn the fabric, as directed on the package of fabric crayons. The fabric crayon marks look dull on the paper, but become bright when transferred to the polyester. See "Iron-on Fabric Crayons for Synthetic Fibers" for an example.
Another alternative is to use a fabric paint that is advertised as being able to work on polyester, such as Jacquard's Dye-Na-Flow or Dharma Pigment Dyes. These are thin paints which mimic the feel of dye.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Can I use Rit dye on a Xbox 360 controller?
Can I use Rit dye on a Xbox 360
controller?
I know you can use RIT dye on lacrosse heads, which is plastic, but not sure if it would work as good on the 360 controller cause it seems to be a different plastic. I would take the case off and all the wires so they wouldn't get messed up.
There may not be any point in taking the risk, when you can buy a colorful "skin" for your Xbox controller for $5.
Rit dye and other dyes that contain acid dyes can be used to dye nylon, which is the material used in lacrosse heads. However, it will not work on other plastics. Other plastics are best dyed while they are still liquid, before they are poured.
You can buy a product called vinyl dye from an auto parts store. It's not really a dye, but rather a pigment that soaks right into the plastic. This will work much better than Rit, for plastics other than nylon. Another alternative is Krylon Fusion for Plastic spray paint, which, unlike other paints, is made to stick to several different types of plastic.
Applying these or any other dye or paint will undoubtedly void your warranty, if you still have one.
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[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
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I know you can use RIT dye on lacrosse heads, which is plastic, but not sure if it would work as good on the 360 controller cause it seems to be a different plastic. I would take the case off and all the wires so they wouldn't get messed up.
There may not be any point in taking the risk, when you can buy a colorful "skin" for your Xbox controller for $5.
Rit dye and other dyes that contain acid dyes can be used to dye nylon, which is the material used in lacrosse heads. However, it will not work on other plastics. Other plastics are best dyed while they are still liquid, before they are poured.
You can buy a product called vinyl dye from an auto parts store. It's not really a dye, but rather a pigment that soaks right into the plastic. This will work much better than Rit, for plastics other than nylon. Another alternative is Krylon Fusion for Plastic spray paint, which, unlike other paints, is made to stick to several different types of plastic.
Applying these or any other dye or paint will undoubtedly void your warranty, if you still have one.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 6, 2008.]
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Where can I get the best tie-dye kit? How much will it cost?
Where can I get the best tie dye kit?
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Tie Dye KitsWhat brand is it? and what store(s) can I get it from? How many
t-shirts can I dye with it? Also, around how much will the kit
cost?
Whatever you do, don't use all-purpose dyes for tie-dyeing cotton. Rit dye is a hot water dye, best used by boiling the fabric in the dye for half an hour or longer. If you try to do a multicolor tie-dye with all-purpose dye, the colors will run together, fade quickly, and bleed forever in the laundry. It is very important to use a good tie-dye kit, not Rit dye. Your results will be much brighter and prettier, and will last for years instead of a few weeks.
The best tie-dye kits contain fiber reactive dyes. These are cool water dyes, which are set with washing soda (also known as soda ash). You cannot find these dyes in a pharmacy or grocery store, but any decent crafts store will sell them, and so will most fabric stores. Sometimes even Walmart will sell a good tie-dye kit.
Good brands of tie-dye kits include Jacquard, Dylon, Tulip, and Rainbow Rock. In the US, Jacquard is the best kit you can buy in a crafts store, but the others can give good results, too. Jacquard sells a "Funky Groovy Tie-Dye Kit" which will dye five t-shirts, or a larger Tie-Dye Kit which will dye fifteen shirts. If you mail order them from MisterArt, they charge $7.82 for the smaller kit and $12.99 for the larger one.
One of the best places to buy tie-dyeing supplies in the US is Dharma Trading Company (by mail order unless you live near San Rafael, California). They sell the best type of dyes (Procion MX dyes) and an incredible array of white cotton clothing that is perfect for dyeing. Dyes purchased in two-ounce jars (you need turquoise, fuchsia, and lemon yellow, or chose your favorite colors from over a hundred different color choices) are much cheaper than those bought in tie-dye kits, though those are still a much better buy than Rit dye, which will dye only half a pound of fabric per $3 box. The kits also contain urea, soda ash, and plastic gloves. Be sure when you buy shirts to dye that you get only 100% cotton or dyeable rayon, and don't get the stain-resistant type of shirt, because they resist dye, too.
For more information, see:
• How to Tie Dye - Complete Instructions
• Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World
• How can I fix the shirts I just tie-dyed with Rit dye so that they'll quit bleeding in the wash and stay bright?
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 7, 2008.]
Whatever you do, don't use all-purpose dyes for tie-dyeing cotton. Rit dye is a hot water dye, best used by boiling the fabric in the dye for half an hour or longer. If you try to do a multicolor tie-dye with all-purpose dye, the colors will run together, fade quickly, and bleed forever in the laundry. It is very important to use a good tie-dye kit, not Rit dye. Your results will be much brighter and prettier, and will last for years instead of a few weeks.
The best tie-dye kits contain fiber reactive dyes. These are cool water dyes, which are set with washing soda (also known as soda ash). You cannot find these dyes in a pharmacy or grocery store, but any decent crafts store will sell them, and so will most fabric stores. Sometimes even Walmart will sell a good tie-dye kit.
Good brands of tie-dye kits include Jacquard, Dylon, Tulip, and Rainbow Rock. In the US, Jacquard is the best kit you can buy in a crafts store, but the others can give good results, too. Jacquard sells a "Funky Groovy Tie-Dye Kit" which will dye five t-shirts, or a larger Tie-Dye Kit which will dye fifteen shirts. If you mail order them from MisterArt, they charge $7.82 for the smaller kit and $12.99 for the larger one.
One of the best places to buy tie-dyeing supplies in the US is Dharma Trading Company (by mail order unless you live near San Rafael, California). They sell the best type of dyes (Procion MX dyes) and an incredible array of white cotton clothing that is perfect for dyeing. Dyes purchased in two-ounce jars (you need turquoise, fuchsia, and lemon yellow, or chose your favorite colors from over a hundred different color choices) are much cheaper than those bought in tie-dye kits, though those are still a much better buy than Rit dye, which will dye only half a pound of fabric per $3 box. The kits also contain urea, soda ash, and plastic gloves. Be sure when you buy shirts to dye that you get only 100% cotton or dyeable rayon, and don't get the stain-resistant type of shirt, because they resist dye, too.
For more information, see:
• How to Tie Dye - Complete Instructions
• Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World
• How can I fix the shirts I just tie-dyed with Rit dye so that they'll quit bleeding in the wash and stay bright?
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
[This material was first posted, by me, on Yahoo answers, on June 7, 2008.]
Friday, June 13, 2008
I love really dense rich colours... What would be the best colours for me to buy in order to mix these colours?
Name: Cat
Message: Hello Paula, Firstly thankyou so much for your site... It is
fantastic... I like the sounds of the Procion MX dyes you speak of... I think I
will order them thru Dharma Trading... I have a question about mixing. I hope
you can help me... I want to just buy the basic colours & mix myself... but
I am confused.... I want to make Strong, Dark & Rich colours (I hate
pastels)... I want to make a Dark Turquiose/Teal, Dark Maroon/Red, & Dark
Purple.... I love really dense rich colours... What would be the best colours
for me to buy in order to make these colours... From the dharma website I was
thinking of a CLEAR YELLOW (PR3A), a ROYAL BLUE (PR95) & a FIRE RED
(PR10)... Do you think these 3 colours will give me my desired colours? Can I
use a black to make my colours darker or not? I look forward to hearing from you
& welcome any advice you can offer.... Thanking you for your
time...
I'm a great fan of pure unmixed colors to use as primaries. I think you get brighter colors that way, and you can always tone your colors down by adding the complementary color (e.g., red to green) when you want something less bright. This means that I do not favor Dharma's Royal Blue PR95, Fire Red PR10, or Clear Yellow PR3A for mixing, though they are fine colors to get in addition to your mixing primaries. They are each mixtures of two or more other colors.
Take a look at my page of "Which Procion MX colors are pure, and which mixtures?". Dharma's names are listed for their pure colors in the first vendor column. All of their colors that are not listed on that page are mixtures, with the exception of their new PR130 Strong Navy.
Most people use turquoise as a mixing primary, but cerulean blue (blue MX-G) is equally good for mixing, for somewhat deeper colors. It is expensive but definitely worth it. I am sure that you want it. You should also, in addition, get a navy blue, either their new PR130 Strong Navy or the old cobalt blue, PR22, which is blue MX-2G. You can add these when you want a darker and richer, but less bright, color.
I do not recommend using black to tone colors if you want deep, rich colors. Adding a black dye mixture will tend to make your colors grayer, and less rich. That does not sound to me like what you are looking for. I certainly do recommend that you buy a black premixed dye, but that you not rely on it much for making your colors darker. Instead, use more dye, or dye the same piece of fabric two or three times.
You can make an excellent dark purple by mixing a navy blue dye with either cerulean blue or turquoise, plus a bluish red such as red MX-8B (fuchsia) or red MX-5B (light red).
For mixing purposes, you must get a bright bluish red. I recommend that you get the color Dharma calls light red, which is red MX-5B. The only good alternative is red MX-8B, fuchsia, which is widely favored for this use. All less bluish reds are mixtures of a bluish red with either a yellow or an orange dye, and therefore not as suitable for mixing purposes. You should also get some orange MX-2R for mixing with your bluish red to get a true red.
If you get any yellow besides yellow MX-8G, your greens will be more olive toned and less emerald. (Yellow MX-6G nd yellow MX-4G, from other vendors, are also good.) If you want to mix any rich bluish greens, you will need this very bright clear yellow, which Dharma calls lemon yellow.
I love fabric to have MORE dye color, so I always use a lot of dye powder. If you do this, you will love the richness of any of the pure unmixed colors. Some of the colors Dharma sells are diluted with a neutral powder in order to make it easier to dye pastels; they are excellent for some purposes, but they are not the colors for you.
Since you are located in Australia, be sure to compare Dharma's prices, after you include shipping charges, to the prices at Batik Oetoro or Kraftkolour. Their prices for dye are significantly higher, but the cost of shipping to your location will be much less. They sell Procion MX dyes in the same basic colors. Though they do not sell nearly as many of the premixed colors, they do sell the colors you need most.
U R a Gem... thankyou so much for all your information. Yes I have compared the Australia prices with Dharma... Dharma will ship the dyes by the normal postal system now which makes it a lot cheaper than the shipping price on line.... To order 4lbs they are charging $30 USD... which is just great... but U can only do this over the phone not online... so yes using the postal system it works out cheaper to buy from Dharmas then buying in AUSTRALIA... Thanks so much for all your recommendations... I get it.. & I shall order soon...
I'm a great fan of pure unmixed colors to use as primaries. I think you get brighter colors that way, and you can always tone your colors down by adding the complementary color (e.g., red to green) when you want something less bright. This means that I do not favor Dharma's Royal Blue PR95, Fire Red PR10, or Clear Yellow PR3A for mixing, though they are fine colors to get in addition to your mixing primaries. They are each mixtures of two or more other colors.
Take a look at my page of "Which Procion MX colors are pure, and which mixtures?". Dharma's names are listed for their pure colors in the first vendor column. All of their colors that are not listed on that page are mixtures, with the exception of their new PR130 Strong Navy.
Most people use turquoise as a mixing primary, but cerulean blue (blue MX-G) is equally good for mixing, for somewhat deeper colors. It is expensive but definitely worth it. I am sure that you want it. You should also, in addition, get a navy blue, either their new PR130 Strong Navy or the old cobalt blue, PR22, which is blue MX-2G. You can add these when you want a darker and richer, but less bright, color.
I do not recommend using black to tone colors if you want deep, rich colors. Adding a black dye mixture will tend to make your colors grayer, and less rich. That does not sound to me like what you are looking for. I certainly do recommend that you buy a black premixed dye, but that you not rely on it much for making your colors darker. Instead, use more dye, or dye the same piece of fabric two or three times.
You can make an excellent dark purple by mixing a navy blue dye with either cerulean blue or turquoise, plus a bluish red such as red MX-8B (fuchsia) or red MX-5B (light red).
For mixing purposes, you must get a bright bluish red. I recommend that you get the color Dharma calls light red, which is red MX-5B. The only good alternative is red MX-8B, fuchsia, which is widely favored for this use. All less bluish reds are mixtures of a bluish red with either a yellow or an orange dye, and therefore not as suitable for mixing purposes. You should also get some orange MX-2R for mixing with your bluish red to get a true red.
If you get any yellow besides yellow MX-8G, your greens will be more olive toned and less emerald. (Yellow MX-6G nd yellow MX-4G, from other vendors, are also good.) If you want to mix any rich bluish greens, you will need this very bright clear yellow, which Dharma calls lemon yellow.
I love fabric to have MORE dye color, so I always use a lot of dye powder. If you do this, you will love the richness of any of the pure unmixed colors. Some of the colors Dharma sells are diluted with a neutral powder in order to make it easier to dye pastels; they are excellent for some purposes, but they are not the colors for you.
Since you are located in Australia, be sure to compare Dharma's prices, after you include shipping charges, to the prices at Batik Oetoro or Kraftkolour. Their prices for dye are significantly higher, but the cost of shipping to your location will be much less. They sell Procion MX dyes in the same basic colors. Though they do not sell nearly as many of the premixed colors, they do sell the colors you need most.
U R a Gem... thankyou so much for all your information. Yes I have compared the Australia prices with Dharma... Dharma will ship the dyes by the normal postal system now which makes it a lot cheaper than the shipping price on line.... To order 4lbs they are charging $30 USD... which is just great... but U can only do this over the phone not online... so yes using the postal system it works out cheaper to buy from Dharmas then buying in AUSTRALIA... Thanks so much for all your recommendations... I get it.. & I shall order soon...
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Can I use a 50% cotton and 50% polyester?
Name:
Mary
Message: Can I use a 50% cotton and 50% polyester?
Thanks for your help!
If you try to dye anything that is 50% cotton and 50% polyester, you will end up with a pastel color, since only half of the fibers will take the dye.
If you happen to have an item that is 50% cotton, you can go ahead and dye it with fiber reactive dye such as Procion MX dye, or with a good tie-dye kit. Even a tie-dye with pale colors can be worthwhile. Beware of using red to dye something that's only 50% cotton for a boy who's phobic about wearing pink. In that case, it's best to stick to blues, greens, and yellows.
If you are going to be dyeing something that you want to have bright colors, or any complex dyeing project, you should buy clothing or fabric that is 100% natural fibers, such as cotton, rayon, hemp, bamboo, or silk. Avoid anything that has been treated to make it stain-resistant, water-repellant, or permanent-press.
You can tie-dye polyester by using fabric paint instead of dye. Good fabric paints to use for this purpose would be Dharma Pigment Dye, which you can order from Dharma Trading Company, or Dye-na-Flow fabric paint, made by Jacquard. The results will be a little different from using dyes on cotton.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
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Tie Dye Kit—ADVERTISEMENTS—
Fabric paintMessage: Can I use a 50% cotton and 50% polyester?
Thanks for your help!
If you try to dye anything that is 50% cotton and 50% polyester, you will end up with a pastel color, since only half of the fibers will take the dye.
If you happen to have an item that is 50% cotton, you can go ahead and dye it with fiber reactive dye such as Procion MX dye, or with a good tie-dye kit. Even a tie-dye with pale colors can be worthwhile. Beware of using red to dye something that's only 50% cotton for a boy who's phobic about wearing pink. In that case, it's best to stick to blues, greens, and yellows.
If you are going to be dyeing something that you want to have bright colors, or any complex dyeing project, you should buy clothing or fabric that is 100% natural fibers, such as cotton, rayon, hemp, bamboo, or silk. Avoid anything that has been treated to make it stain-resistant, water-repellant, or permanent-press.
You can tie-dye polyester by using fabric paint instead of dye. Good fabric paints to use for this purpose would be Dharma Pigment Dye, which you can order from Dharma Trading Company, or Dye-na-Flow fabric paint, made by Jacquard. The results will be a little different from using dyes on cotton.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Is there a way to make shoe dye more permanent on polyester satin shoes?
Name:
Lin
Message: I would like to dye some new fabric shoes that are ivory in color to dark purple or eggplant color. I am assuming the fabric on the shoe is polyester satin. I have been doing some investigating and have not found much in the way of permanent fabric shoe dye. Most all shoe dye say will run, can you not add vinegar or citric acid, what about uniodized salt - to help the running factor or even some soda ash and do you need a swelling agent to help penetrate the polyster!! Please help as you can see I am a novice!!!
I think that your best bet would be to use a permanent fabric paint. Some fabric paints are specifically claimed by their manufacturers to work on polyester. For an effect similar to dye, use a thin, dye-like fabric paint, such as Jacquard's Dye-na-Flow or Dharma Pigment Dyes.
Adding chemicals such as vinegar, salt, or soda ash will not make shoe dyes permanent on polyester. The only dyes that work on polyester are disperse dyes, which must be boiled extensively with the material to be dyed. Obviously, you cannot boil your shoes without their falling apart.
Many fabric paints require heat-setting. This can be done with a heat gun, which is like a hair dyer without the blower, or you can add an acrylic catalyst to the paint before use, instead of heat-setting. Unlike dye, fabric paints can be set with completely dry heat, in the absence of steam or any other moisture. Jacquard Dye-na-flow is one of the paints that requires heat-setting for maximum colorfastness; the additive that can be substituted for the heat-setting step is called Jacquard Airfix. Even without heat-setting, the paint will be more wash-resistant after drying for a few weeks than when it is freshly applied, but you can be more certain of the paint's water resistance if you either use the catalyst or heat-set the paint. Dharma Trading Company sells a similar catalyst called Versatex "No Heat" Fixative. The instructions for Dharma Pigment Dyes (which are actually paints, not dyes) do not say that they require heat-setting on polyester. They will not make a perfectly smooth and even solid color, but instead a color with some variation in darkness, like pigment dyed clothing.
All of the Jacquard fabric paints are supposed to work on polyester, so you have the option of metallic or pearlescent effects, by using their Lumiere fabric paints.
Before you do anything to alter the color of your shoes, check to be sure that they are not water-resistant. Water-resistant shoes cannot be dyed. To test this, sprinkle a drop of two of water onto the shoe. If the water beads up, the shoe is water-resistant and cannot be colored, but if the water soaks in, it will probably accept the paint reasonably well.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
—ADVERTISEMENT—
Message: I would like to dye some new fabric shoes that are ivory in color to dark purple or eggplant color. I am assuming the fabric on the shoe is polyester satin. I have been doing some investigating and have not found much in the way of permanent fabric shoe dye. Most all shoe dye say will run, can you not add vinegar or citric acid, what about uniodized salt - to help the running factor or even some soda ash and do you need a swelling agent to help penetrate the polyster!! Please help as you can see I am a novice!!!
I think that your best bet would be to use a permanent fabric paint. Some fabric paints are specifically claimed by their manufacturers to work on polyester. For an effect similar to dye, use a thin, dye-like fabric paint, such as Jacquard's Dye-na-Flow or Dharma Pigment Dyes.
Adding chemicals such as vinegar, salt, or soda ash will not make shoe dyes permanent on polyester. The only dyes that work on polyester are disperse dyes, which must be boiled extensively with the material to be dyed. Obviously, you cannot boil your shoes without their falling apart.
Many fabric paints require heat-setting. This can be done with a heat gun, which is like a hair dyer without the blower, or you can add an acrylic catalyst to the paint before use, instead of heat-setting. Unlike dye, fabric paints can be set with completely dry heat, in the absence of steam or any other moisture. Jacquard Dye-na-flow is one of the paints that requires heat-setting for maximum colorfastness; the additive that can be substituted for the heat-setting step is called Jacquard Airfix. Even without heat-setting, the paint will be more wash-resistant after drying for a few weeks than when it is freshly applied, but you can be more certain of the paint's water resistance if you either use the catalyst or heat-set the paint. Dharma Trading Company sells a similar catalyst called Versatex "No Heat" Fixative. The instructions for Dharma Pigment Dyes (which are actually paints, not dyes) do not say that they require heat-setting on polyester. They will not make a perfectly smooth and even solid color, but instead a color with some variation in darkness, like pigment dyed clothing.
All of the Jacquard fabric paints are supposed to work on polyester, so you have the option of metallic or pearlescent effects, by using their Lumiere fabric paints.
Before you do anything to alter the color of your shoes, check to be sure that they are not water-resistant. Water-resistant shoes cannot be dyed. To test this, sprinkle a drop of two of water onto the shoe. If the water beads up, the shoe is water-resistant and cannot be colored, but if the water soaks in, it will probably accept the paint reasonably well.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Is it possible to tie-dye leggings to look like Hulk Hogan's?
Name: Simon
G
Message: Hi there I need to get a pair of Hulk Hogan red/yellow leggings. As I cannot find any anywhere, is it possible to tie-dye a pair? If so, would it be better getting a red pair to dye with a yellow pattern, or a yellow pair to dye with a red pattern??
Yes, you certainly can tie-dye tights or leggings, if they are white or yellow. It should be easy to dye them to look like Hulk Hogan's. The best ones to dye would be at least 80% cotton, because you can dye them with cool water fiber reactive dyes, such as Procion MX dyes. You can also dye white or yellow nylon tights or leggings, using acid dyes.
I know some good sources for cotton leggings in the US, such as Dharma Trading Company, but I don't know where to buy them in the UK, where you are. They must be available. Just check for the fiber content. You should start with white or yellow, because red dye or paint can easily be applied onto yellow leggings, but you generally can't lighten red to make yellow.
Even polyester leggings would do, actually. You can't dye polyester, not for a reasonable amount of trouble, but you can use a thin fabric paint, which will look a lot like a dye. I know that Fibrecrafts, for one, sells some good thin fabric paints that will work on polyester, and there are undoubtedly other sources in your area as well.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
—ADVERTISEMENT—
Message: Hi there I need to get a pair of Hulk Hogan red/yellow leggings. As I cannot find any anywhere, is it possible to tie-dye a pair? If so, would it be better getting a red pair to dye with a yellow pattern, or a yellow pair to dye with a red pattern??
Yes, you certainly can tie-dye tights or leggings, if they are white or yellow. It should be easy to dye them to look like Hulk Hogan's. The best ones to dye would be at least 80% cotton, because you can dye them with cool water fiber reactive dyes, such as Procion MX dyes. You can also dye white or yellow nylon tights or leggings, using acid dyes.
I know some good sources for cotton leggings in the US, such as Dharma Trading Company, but I don't know where to buy them in the UK, where you are. They must be available. Just check for the fiber content. You should start with white or yellow, because red dye or paint can easily be applied onto yellow leggings, but you generally can't lighten red to make yellow.
Even polyester leggings would do, actually. You can't dye polyester, not for a reasonable amount of trouble, but you can use a thin fabric paint, which will look a lot like a dye. I know that Fibrecrafts, for one, sells some good thin fabric paints that will work on polyester, and there are undoubtedly other sources in your area as well.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
Monday, June 09, 2008
looking for blank hoodies for big and tall men
Name:
Lori
Message: I am actually looking for dyeable/blanks for big and tall men also, but need hoodies. Dharma doesn't have hoodies in larger sizes...any suggestions?
I wish I had suggestions to offer! Dharma says that Hanes has discontinued the size 2x men's hoodies that they used to sell, but they sell their own label up to size 2X now. For sizes above 2X, I don't know of any source.
You can buy hooded sweatshirts in sizes up to 10XT from Big & Tall Shirts but the prices are considerably higher than Dharma's—up to five times the price!—and I don't know whether they are 100% cotton. Anything that contains at least 80% cotton will generally dye well.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
Message: I am actually looking for dyeable/blanks for big and tall men also, but need hoodies. Dharma doesn't have hoodies in larger sizes...any suggestions?
I wish I had suggestions to offer! Dharma says that Hanes has discontinued the size 2x men's hoodies that they used to sell, but they sell their own label up to size 2X now. For sizes above 2X, I don't know of any source.
You can buy hooded sweatshirts in sizes up to 10XT from Big & Tall Shirts but the prices are considerably higher than Dharma's—up to five times the price!—and I don't know whether they are 100% cotton. Anything that contains at least 80% cotton will generally dye well.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Are Reactive Dyes eco-friendly?
Name:
Carolyn
Jacquard Silk Colors are Remazol type
fiber reactive dyes
Dylon Machine Dye is Levafix type fiber reactive dye
Message: Are Reactive Dyes eco-friendly?
If you are considering their use, fiber reactive dyes are eco-friendly, in most respects. The small amounts of dye you use are safe to dispose of down the drain or in your septic tank. The dyes are not very toxic or carcinogenic, unlike some direct dyes that until recent years were commonly used in all-purpose dye, and they do not require the use of toxic mordants. The heavy metal content is low for a few colors (turquoise and cherry contain about 2% copper), and zero for the rest of the colors. (See "Toxicity of Procion Dyes".) The only problem at the dyer's end is that the amount of water required to rinse out excess unattached dye can be excessive for those who are under drought conditions.
The eco-friendliness of dye synthesis is another question, one that is very difficult to answer. Dyes are manufactured in many different factories across Europe and Asia. Petroleum products are essential for the manufacture of many of the chemicals required.
Dystar is the owner of the Procion trademark. They no longer make Procion MX dyes, but they still make other fiber reactive dyes such as the Procion H-E dyes, the Remazol dyes, and the Levafix dyes (which are the same type as Drimarene K dyes). Their dyes have earned the EU label [PDF link]) and Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certification. However, other dye manufacturers may or may not follow similar standards.
The most eco-friendly garments are made from organically grown fiber that is either undyed or colored by pigments that are grown in the fiber, such as the naturally colored cottons developed by Sally Fox, or wool made from different colors of sheep. Natural dyes sound eco-friendly but are not necessarily kind to the environment. Almost all natural dyes require the use of chemical mordants; alum is the safest one, but even it is toxic, even fatal if swallowed in quantities as little as one ounce for an adult, and considerably smaller quantities for children. Other mordants greatly expand the range of colors available from natural dyes, and were industrially important before the introduction of modern synthetic dyes, but pose significant problems with toxicity to the dyer and environmental issues.
Natural dyes themselves are not entirely benign, either, even when you ignore the problem of mordants. Large quantities of natural dyestuffs are required, compared to synthetic dyes; where you need only 5 grams of Procion MX type dye to color a pound of fabric to a medium shade, you may need two or three pounds of a natural dyestuff to obtain a similar color, though the color from most natural dyes will almost never last more than a fraction as long, on fabric that is subjected to regular washing. The amount of land required to grow natural dyestuffs could have surprisingly negative effects, caused by the diversion of land that would otherwise be used to grow food crops or allowed to remain wild, much as we've seen resulting from the use of corn to produce ethanol for fuel. Mud-dyeing would seem to be an ideal alternative, but mud-dyed garments fade to beige after only a few launderings.
A possibly greater problem for the environment is the frequent disposal and replacement of garments. Any garment whose dye fades quickly may be discarded sooner, resulting in a greater cost to the environment when the garment is replaced. Longer lasting dyes, such as fiber reactive dyes, may in fact reduce the cost to the environment if they extend the lifespans of garments dyed with them.
On the whole, it is difficult or impossible to judge whether fiber reactive dyes are any less eco-friendly than any other dye. The most eco-friendly alternative is to wear undyed clothing, but is that really necessary? It would be more useful to buy clothing to last for many years, rather than replacing it when it becomes worn or goes out of fashion, and to redye your own clothing rather than replacing it.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
—ADVERTISEMENT—
Jacquard Silk Colors are Remazol type
fiber reactive dyes
Dylon Machine Dye is Levafix type fiber reactive dye
Message: Are Reactive Dyes eco-friendly?
If you are considering their use, fiber reactive dyes are eco-friendly, in most respects. The small amounts of dye you use are safe to dispose of down the drain or in your septic tank. The dyes are not very toxic or carcinogenic, unlike some direct dyes that until recent years were commonly used in all-purpose dye, and they do not require the use of toxic mordants. The heavy metal content is low for a few colors (turquoise and cherry contain about 2% copper), and zero for the rest of the colors. (See "Toxicity of Procion Dyes".) The only problem at the dyer's end is that the amount of water required to rinse out excess unattached dye can be excessive for those who are under drought conditions.
The eco-friendliness of dye synthesis is another question, one that is very difficult to answer. Dyes are manufactured in many different factories across Europe and Asia. Petroleum products are essential for the manufacture of many of the chemicals required.
Dystar is the owner of the Procion trademark. They no longer make Procion MX dyes, but they still make other fiber reactive dyes such as the Procion H-E dyes, the Remazol dyes, and the Levafix dyes (which are the same type as Drimarene K dyes). Their dyes have earned the EU label [PDF link]) and Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certification. However, other dye manufacturers may or may not follow similar standards.
The most eco-friendly garments are made from organically grown fiber that is either undyed or colored by pigments that are grown in the fiber, such as the naturally colored cottons developed by Sally Fox, or wool made from different colors of sheep. Natural dyes sound eco-friendly but are not necessarily kind to the environment. Almost all natural dyes require the use of chemical mordants; alum is the safest one, but even it is toxic, even fatal if swallowed in quantities as little as one ounce for an adult, and considerably smaller quantities for children. Other mordants greatly expand the range of colors available from natural dyes, and were industrially important before the introduction of modern synthetic dyes, but pose significant problems with toxicity to the dyer and environmental issues.
Natural dyes themselves are not entirely benign, either, even when you ignore the problem of mordants. Large quantities of natural dyestuffs are required, compared to synthetic dyes; where you need only 5 grams of Procion MX type dye to color a pound of fabric to a medium shade, you may need two or three pounds of a natural dyestuff to obtain a similar color, though the color from most natural dyes will almost never last more than a fraction as long, on fabric that is subjected to regular washing. The amount of land required to grow natural dyestuffs could have surprisingly negative effects, caused by the diversion of land that would otherwise be used to grow food crops or allowed to remain wild, much as we've seen resulting from the use of corn to produce ethanol for fuel. Mud-dyeing would seem to be an ideal alternative, but mud-dyed garments fade to beige after only a few launderings.
A possibly greater problem for the environment is the frequent disposal and replacement of garments. Any garment whose dye fades quickly may be discarded sooner, resulting in a greater cost to the environment when the garment is replaced. Longer lasting dyes, such as fiber reactive dyes, may in fact reduce the cost to the environment if they extend the lifespans of garments dyed with them.
On the whole, it is difficult or impossible to judge whether fiber reactive dyes are any less eco-friendly than any other dye. The most eco-friendly alternative is to wear undyed clothing, but is that really necessary? It would be more useful to buy clothing to last for many years, rather than replacing it when it becomes worn or goes out of fashion, and to redye your own clothing rather than replacing it.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)
Saturday, June 07, 2008
I'd like to dye a tangerine skirt to a rust or brick red. What color do you suggest I add to the fabric?
Name:
Jenny
Message: Hello! I bought a tangerine orange (almost neon) skirt for a teacher's union rally. The color isn't me, and I'd like to dye it a rust or brick red. What color do you suggest I add to the fabric?
Tangerine to rust should be a good color change. So should tangerine to brick red. It is always best to go from a lighter color to a darker one, and both rust and brick red contain some orange. If you overdye tangerine with a brown dye, you should get a rust sort of color, while if you overdye with a maroon dye, you should get brick red.
More important is the question of what kind of dye you are going to use. It is very important to match the type of dye you use to the fiber content of your garment. If your skirt is cotton, rayon, or silk, use a fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye, in the washing machine with salt and soda ash, or, if you're in Europe or Australia, Dylon Machine Dye. (Dylon Machine Dye is not available in North America.) If your skirt is nylon or silk, you can use use acid dye or all-purpose dye. (Silk will take both types of dye.) If your skirt is polyester, you can dye it only by boiling it with disperse dye, which you'll have to mail-order because it is not available in local stores.
The best way to dye a natural fiber garment so that it ends up a single solid color is to dye in the washing machine. Procion MX dyes will not hurt your machine, and will last much longer in your skirt than all-purpose dye. For more information, see "How can I dye clothing or fabric in the washing machine?".
You should also keep in mind that the thread with which your skirt was sewn together was almost certainly polyester, so it will remain the original color. How will your skirt look when it is brick red or rust-colored, if the seams are still tangerine in color? In some cases, this will look fine, but in others, it will be unacceptable. See "Why did the thread stay white?"
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Message: Hello! I bought a tangerine orange (almost neon) skirt for a teacher's union rally. The color isn't me, and I'd like to dye it a rust or brick red. What color do you suggest I add to the fabric?
Tangerine to rust should be a good color change. So should tangerine to brick red. It is always best to go from a lighter color to a darker one, and both rust and brick red contain some orange. If you overdye tangerine with a brown dye, you should get a rust sort of color, while if you overdye with a maroon dye, you should get brick red.
More important is the question of what kind of dye you are going to use. It is very important to match the type of dye you use to the fiber content of your garment. If your skirt is cotton, rayon, or silk, use a fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye, in the washing machine with salt and soda ash, or, if you're in Europe or Australia, Dylon Machine Dye. (Dylon Machine Dye is not available in North America.) If your skirt is nylon or silk, you can use use acid dye or all-purpose dye. (Silk will take both types of dye.) If your skirt is polyester, you can dye it only by boiling it with disperse dye, which you'll have to mail-order because it is not available in local stores.
The best way to dye a natural fiber garment so that it ends up a single solid color is to dye in the washing machine. Procion MX dyes will not hurt your machine, and will last much longer in your skirt than all-purpose dye. For more information, see "How can I dye clothing or fabric in the washing machine?".
You should also keep in mind that the thread with which your skirt was sewn together was almost certainly polyester, so it will remain the original color. How will your skirt look when it is brick red or rust-colored, if the seams are still tangerine in color? In some cases, this will look fine, but in others, it will be unacceptable. See "Why did the thread stay white?"
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Thursday, June 05, 2008
Can I use fabric crayons to redye where the armpits of a polyester dress have changed from navy blue to pink?
Name:
Jenny
Message: I have a dress that I think is polyester -- the tag is no longer in it. I tried to dye it with Ritco dye with no success.
I don't want to change the color. It is a navy dress, and the armpits have turned pinks, I'm assuming from reaction to perspiration.
Since immersion dying polyester is so difficult, might some of the fabric crayons you mention help with this issue, and allow me to cover the pink with navy so the dress will again be wearable?
If Rit all-purpose dye did not change the color of the dress at all, even for a few washings, then it's a good bet that you do have polyester there.
Regardless of the fiber content of a garment, it's pretty much impossible to redye a stain to match the rest of it. Dyeing to match a color is very difficult; you're apt to produce the wrong hue, or a shade that's too dark or too light.
On the other hand, at least with the disperse dye crayons you could keep trying, and they're not much of an investment. You can buy them at a fabric store. They will not come in the exact color you need; they include black and a bright medium blue. You would need to color paper with the black crayon, and color over it with blue, before ironing it on. You can probably repeat the process in the same place to further amend the color. I don't think that you will be able to match the color of the rest of the dress, but you can try.
According to Unilever, the problem in clothing is caused by interaction of acid-sensitive dyes in fabric with the acid pH found in antiperspirants; they say that the most common color change is from blue to pink. This is the same color change we see in a number of pH indicators, such as litmus paper. If the manufacturer had made a better choice of dyes, you would not have a problem with pink stains now.
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Message: I have a dress that I think is polyester -- the tag is no longer in it. I tried to dye it with Ritco dye with no success.
I don't want to change the color. It is a navy dress, and the armpits have turned pinks, I'm assuming from reaction to perspiration.
Since immersion dying polyester is so difficult, might some of the fabric crayons you mention help with this issue, and allow me to cover the pink with navy so the dress will again be wearable?
If Rit all-purpose dye did not change the color of the dress at all, even for a few washings, then it's a good bet that you do have polyester there.
Regardless of the fiber content of a garment, it's pretty much impossible to redye a stain to match the rest of it. Dyeing to match a color is very difficult; you're apt to produce the wrong hue, or a shade that's too dark or too light.
On the other hand, at least with the disperse dye crayons you could keep trying, and they're not much of an investment. You can buy them at a fabric store. They will not come in the exact color you need; they include black and a bright medium blue. You would need to color paper with the black crayon, and color over it with blue, before ironing it on. You can probably repeat the process in the same place to further amend the color. I don't think that you will be able to match the color of the rest of the dress, but you can try.
According to Unilever, the problem in clothing is caused by interaction of acid-sensitive dyes in fabric with the acid pH found in antiperspirants; they say that the most common color change is from blue to pink. This is the same color change we see in a number of pH indicators, such as litmus paper. If the manufacturer had made a better choice of dyes, you would not have a problem with pink stains now.
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Wednesday, June 04, 2008
I have a pair of trousers that are 55% polyester & 45% wool - are they possible to dye and if so what would you recommend?
Name:
Simon
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Message: Hello, I have a pair of trousers that are 55% polyester & 45% wool - are they possible to dye and if so what would you recommend ? many thanks, Simon
That's a difficult fiber combination to dye. Polyester dyes best when boiled extensively with disperse dye, while wool requires gentle temperature changes to prevent felting and shrinkage. There is no dye that you can use that will dye both wool and polyester. Polyester requires disperse dye, while wool requires acid dye. Neither one will affect the other fiber much.
It might be possible to dye them using Jacquard's new polyester dye, "iDye Poly", which, from their instructions, appears to need a little less heat than most other disperse dyes, in combination with their all-purpose dye "iDye". Since you're in the UK, a good source from which to mail-order these dyes in the UK would be Fibrecrafts. However, I'm afraid that you will probably be seeing some significant shrinkage of your trousers.
You would also need a very large non-aluminum cooking pot to do the dyeing in, one large enough to permit the trousers to move freely in the dye water. This gets very expensive for someone who does not do a lot of dyeing, because you are not supposed to reuse a dyepot for food ever again, once it's been used for dyeing. The amount of money you'd have to spend on a large dyepot might be enough to buy you a new pair of trousers.
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Message: Hello, I have a pair of trousers that are 55% polyester & 45% wool - are they possible to dye and if so what would you recommend ? many thanks, Simon
That's a difficult fiber combination to dye. Polyester dyes best when boiled extensively with disperse dye, while wool requires gentle temperature changes to prevent felting and shrinkage. There is no dye that you can use that will dye both wool and polyester. Polyester requires disperse dye, while wool requires acid dye. Neither one will affect the other fiber much.
It might be possible to dye them using Jacquard's new polyester dye, "iDye Poly", which, from their instructions, appears to need a little less heat than most other disperse dyes, in combination with their all-purpose dye "iDye". Since you're in the UK, a good source from which to mail-order these dyes in the UK would be Fibrecrafts. However, I'm afraid that you will probably be seeing some significant shrinkage of your trousers.
You would also need a very large non-aluminum cooking pot to do the dyeing in, one large enough to permit the trousers to move freely in the dye water. This gets very expensive for someone who does not do a lot of dyeing, because you are not supposed to reuse a dyepot for food ever again, once it's been used for dyeing. The amount of money you'd have to spend on a large dyepot might be enough to buy you a new pair of trousers.
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Tuesday, June 03, 2008
how to safely lighten the color from natural fiber rope, hemp and jute specifically
Name:
Taymara
Message: Hello... I am wondering how to safely lighten the color from natural fiber rope, hemp and jute specifically. Fiber degredation is a peril as the rope is used for suspension after being dyed, so bleach is not an option. Too, any suggestions to increase color vibrancy would be greatly appreciated.
Reductive discharges will be less damaging than oxidative bleaches, in general, but will they be completely safe, without making the rope any weaker? I don't know. I worry that even the gentler discharge agents might have some effect on the strength of the rope.
If you will make sure to test your ropes for strength after treating them, I can tell you what chemicals to try. My page on "What chemicals can be used to remove dye?" describes a number of different chemicals that are used to decolorize natural fibers. Hydrogen peroxide is an oxidative discharge chemical that is very popular in industrial bleaching of cotton and other natural fibers. Thiourea dioxide and sodium hydrosulfite are the two main reductive options; see the link above for descriptions.
You can buy sodium hydrosulfite (also known as sodium dithionite) in the form of Rit Color Remover, but when you need to be able to store larger quantities, thiourea dioxide will give you similar results without the storage dangers. (Large amounts of sodium hydrosulfite can cause fires if they get slightly damp.) Thiourea Dioxide is also sold under the name Jacquard Color Remover. Contact a dye supplier or chemical supplier if you need to purchase large quantities.
When it comes time to dye the ropes, for the best color vibrancy, you should use fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. Other types of dye will fade quickly when wet. If lightfastness is an issue, choose your specific dye colors with care. See my page on Lightfastness of Different Dyes. Try to use only dyes with a lightfastness rating of 6 or better. Vat dyes, in general, are much more lightfast (see the table lower on that page), but they are considerably more difficult to apply. Pigment dyes or fabric paints are more light-resistant, but fade quickly from wear.
Please test your ropes after you treat them to determine whether their strength has been at all compromised.
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Message: Hello... I am wondering how to safely lighten the color from natural fiber rope, hemp and jute specifically. Fiber degredation is a peril as the rope is used for suspension after being dyed, so bleach is not an option. Too, any suggestions to increase color vibrancy would be greatly appreciated.
Reductive discharges will be less damaging than oxidative bleaches, in general, but will they be completely safe, without making the rope any weaker? I don't know. I worry that even the gentler discharge agents might have some effect on the strength of the rope.
If you will make sure to test your ropes for strength after treating them, I can tell you what chemicals to try. My page on "What chemicals can be used to remove dye?" describes a number of different chemicals that are used to decolorize natural fibers. Hydrogen peroxide is an oxidative discharge chemical that is very popular in industrial bleaching of cotton and other natural fibers. Thiourea dioxide and sodium hydrosulfite are the two main reductive options; see the link above for descriptions.
You can buy sodium hydrosulfite (also known as sodium dithionite) in the form of Rit Color Remover, but when you need to be able to store larger quantities, thiourea dioxide will give you similar results without the storage dangers. (Large amounts of sodium hydrosulfite can cause fires if they get slightly damp.) Thiourea Dioxide is also sold under the name Jacquard Color Remover. Contact a dye supplier or chemical supplier if you need to purchase large quantities.
When it comes time to dye the ropes, for the best color vibrancy, you should use fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. Other types of dye will fade quickly when wet. If lightfastness is an issue, choose your specific dye colors with care. See my page on Lightfastness of Different Dyes. Try to use only dyes with a lightfastness rating of 6 or better. Vat dyes, in general, are much more lightfast (see the table lower on that page), but they are considerably more difficult to apply. Pigment dyes or fabric paints are more light-resistant, but fade quickly from wear.
Please test your ropes after you treat them to determine whether their strength has been at all compromised.
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Monday, June 02, 2008
How important is the kelp for tie-dyeing?
Name:
Sangeetha
Message: Thanks for taking the time to answer my question, and for creating an amazing website.
My question is: according to the Tie Dye 101 video, I am supposed to add 1 teaspoon kelp to the dye pre-mix solution, and when I did, the water turned an ugly green-brown color. But on the video, their dye pre-mix solution looks clear. Did I do something wrong? I bought regular powdered kelp from a healthfood store. I am afraid of making my dye solutions using this ugly-colored pre-mix solution and wonder if I should make it again, this time omitting the kelp. How important is the kelp?
It is not all that important. I almost always omit any thickener at all. I think that you should go ahead and remake your solutions without it this time. Adding thickener can be helpful in getting finer details in your more complex tie-dye designs, however, and it is essential for some styles of fabric painting.
When I do use thickener, I avoid the stuff from the health food store. I am afraid that what you have might contain additional ingredients or impurities, though it's probably all right to use. I prefer to use purified sodium alginate, which is sold by the better dye suppliers. You can buy it in pure form, in which case you should be sure to also use the water softener sodium hexametaphosphate, to prevent gelling. Alternatively, you can buy it in the form of ProChem's Print Paste mix, which contain urea, sodium alginate, and sodium hexametaphosphate, or you can buy Jacquard or Dharma's Superclear, which is sold in liquid form.
For more information, see "Sodium alginate, Superclear, and other dye thickeners".
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Message: Thanks for taking the time to answer my question, and for creating an amazing website.
My question is: according to the Tie Dye 101 video, I am supposed to add 1 teaspoon kelp to the dye pre-mix solution, and when I did, the water turned an ugly green-brown color. But on the video, their dye pre-mix solution looks clear. Did I do something wrong? I bought regular powdered kelp from a healthfood store. I am afraid of making my dye solutions using this ugly-colored pre-mix solution and wonder if I should make it again, this time omitting the kelp. How important is the kelp?
It is not all that important. I almost always omit any thickener at all. I think that you should go ahead and remake your solutions without it this time. Adding thickener can be helpful in getting finer details in your more complex tie-dye designs, however, and it is essential for some styles of fabric painting.
When I do use thickener, I avoid the stuff from the health food store. I am afraid that what you have might contain additional ingredients or impurities, though it's probably all right to use. I prefer to use purified sodium alginate, which is sold by the better dye suppliers. You can buy it in pure form, in which case you should be sure to also use the water softener sodium hexametaphosphate, to prevent gelling. Alternatively, you can buy it in the form of ProChem's Print Paste mix, which contain urea, sodium alginate, and sodium hexametaphosphate, or you can buy Jacquard or Dharma's Superclear, which is sold in liquid form.
For more information, see "Sodium alginate, Superclear, and other dye thickeners".
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Sunday, June 01, 2008
Is there a way to do dip dye/tie dye like the way it is done with Rit?
Name: Krista
Message: Is there a way to do dip dye/tie dye like the way it is done with Rit? Except I'm using Procion MX dyes. For example: Triple-dipped Donut & Rosettes Tie-Dye with Rit Dye.
DVDs on How to Tie Dye
Anything you can do with all-purpose dye, you can do better with fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. It's easier to do, also, since you do not have to use boiling water (and spoil a good cooking pot!).
In the example at the Rit dye site you linked to, they prepared three separate dyebaths, with yellow, red, and navy dye. They tied the shirt with various sizes of circles and doughnuts, at what appear to be random intervals, where they wanted the fabric to remain white, then dyed in a yellow dyebath. Next, they tied more circles and doughnuts where they wanted the fabric to remain yellow, then dyed in a red dyebath. Finally, they added still more circles where the wanted the fabric to remain red, including some inside and outside the earlier rings, and finally dyed the whole shirt navy blue. None of the ties were removed until after the final dying step was complete.
You can follow the exact same procedure, except for using Procion dye, which as you know is set by adding soda ash instead of heat. Instead of using one box of Rit dye plus 2 gallons of simmering water for each dye color, you can use one tablespoon of Procion MX dye powder, or more or less depending on the color you want, in 1.5 gallons of room temperature water (70°F or warmer), along with a large quantity (1.5 cups) of salt, and three tablespoons of soda ash. Just as in the Rit recipe, the earlier colors of dye will contaminate the later dyebaths, since you're not washing out any excess unattached dye before moving to the next step, but this is not important as long as you chose your colors with the same care, starting with the lightest color and ending with the darkest one.
Alternatively, you can mix up concentrated dyes and apply them directly to the shirt, just as in the standard recipe for tie-dyeing. In this case you would mix one tablespoon of dye and one tablespoon of urea (optional) in one cup of water. You do not need to use salt when you are using a low ratio of water to dye. Either presoak your shirt in soda ash (mixed one cup per gallon of water), or add one-half teaspoon of soda ash to each cup of dye immediately before use. Lay the shirt on a rack or in a plastic dishpan, and squirt the dye on the tied shirt. When tying items that are wet with any sort of dye, be sure to wear reliable gloves.
It would be simpler to use a two-step procedure instead of Rit's three-step procedure, since Procion dyes can be applied directly to the fabric, instead of its being necessary to immerse and simmer them as with Rit dye. First, tie any circles you want to stay white. Then soak the shirt in soda ash, as for ordinary tie-dye. Squirt your different colors of dye, except for the final dark color, on various parts of the untied shirt. You could squirt red on some sections and yellow on others. Leave the dye to react for several hours (or microwave for a quick reaction if you're in a hurry), then rinse the excess dye out of the shirt out to allow for easy handling. Tie circles wherever you want to keep the red and yellow colors, then squirt on navy blue dye, mixed with more soda ash.
Here are a couple of examples of shirts that I dyed black with white circles first, and then overdyed with bright colors:
I used another fiber reactive dye for this project.
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Message: Is there a way to do dip dye/tie dye like the way it is done with Rit? Except I'm using Procion MX dyes. For example: Triple-dipped Donut & Rosettes Tie-Dye with Rit Dye.
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DVDs on How to Tie Dye
Anything you can do with all-purpose dye, you can do better with fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX dye. It's easier to do, also, since you do not have to use boiling water (and spoil a good cooking pot!).
In the example at the Rit dye site you linked to, they prepared three separate dyebaths, with yellow, red, and navy dye. They tied the shirt with various sizes of circles and doughnuts, at what appear to be random intervals, where they wanted the fabric to remain white, then dyed in a yellow dyebath. Next, they tied more circles and doughnuts where they wanted the fabric to remain yellow, then dyed in a red dyebath. Finally, they added still more circles where the wanted the fabric to remain red, including some inside and outside the earlier rings, and finally dyed the whole shirt navy blue. None of the ties were removed until after the final dying step was complete.
You can follow the exact same procedure, except for using Procion dye, which as you know is set by adding soda ash instead of heat. Instead of using one box of Rit dye plus 2 gallons of simmering water for each dye color, you can use one tablespoon of Procion MX dye powder, or more or less depending on the color you want, in 1.5 gallons of room temperature water (70°F or warmer), along with a large quantity (1.5 cups) of salt, and three tablespoons of soda ash. Just as in the Rit recipe, the earlier colors of dye will contaminate the later dyebaths, since you're not washing out any excess unattached dye before moving to the next step, but this is not important as long as you chose your colors with the same care, starting with the lightest color and ending with the darkest one.
Alternatively, you can mix up concentrated dyes and apply them directly to the shirt, just as in the standard recipe for tie-dyeing. In this case you would mix one tablespoon of dye and one tablespoon of urea (optional) in one cup of water. You do not need to use salt when you are using a low ratio of water to dye. Either presoak your shirt in soda ash (mixed one cup per gallon of water), or add one-half teaspoon of soda ash to each cup of dye immediately before use. Lay the shirt on a rack or in a plastic dishpan, and squirt the dye on the tied shirt. When tying items that are wet with any sort of dye, be sure to wear reliable gloves.
It would be simpler to use a two-step procedure instead of Rit's three-step procedure, since Procion dyes can be applied directly to the fabric, instead of its being necessary to immerse and simmer them as with Rit dye. First, tie any circles you want to stay white. Then soak the shirt in soda ash, as for ordinary tie-dye. Squirt your different colors of dye, except for the final dark color, on various parts of the untied shirt. You could squirt red on some sections and yellow on others. Leave the dye to react for several hours (or microwave for a quick reaction if you're in a hurry), then rinse the excess dye out of the shirt out to allow for easy handling. Tie circles wherever you want to keep the red and yellow colors, then squirt on navy blue dye, mixed with more soda ash.
Here are a couple of examples of shirts that I dyed black with white circles first, and then overdyed with bright colors:
I used another fiber reactive dye for this project.
(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)