Arts & Crafts Anybody know how to Dip Dye? I need help!

[TallulahJane]

So I love the whole dip dye/ombre look going on and I wanted to give it a try myself. I bought an 100% cotton dress from American Apparel that is white and some teal Rit dye.

I want the bottom of the dress to be teal and then fade lighter into the white. How do I do this? Do I need to put a rubber band where I want to teal to stop and fade into the white? I tried to google how to dip dye and there its nothing!!

 

[KittyBag]

Oh, I really like the looks you posted pictures of! I'm not sure how to do this, but might spend some time looking online to try and find out!

 

[ILuvShopping]

i don't know how to either, but i would think that you wouldn't want to use a rubber band, that would cause a break..... i think the blue would gradually bleed/crawl it's way up farther creating a gradual gradient...

i wonder what would happen if you stuck it in the dye... and then hung it upside down? (after making sure that most of the water is drained out of it first)

 

[TallulahJane]

i don't know how to either, but i would think that you wouldn't want to use a rubber band, that would cause a break..... i think the blue would gradually bleed/crawl it's way up farther creating a gradual gradient...

i wonder what would happen if you stuck it in the dye... and then hung it upside down? (after making sure that most of the water is drained out of it first)

I thought the same thing! I want it to look like a really smooth fade.

I found a video on how to do it using a spray bottle and spraying full strength dye a few inched up from the bottom, then diluting with water to lighten the color then spraying a few more inches up and then did it again, but they covered the whole t shirt. I think that might work if I did it with the dress but not all the way up because I want it to fade from white to teal. The spray looked good though because it was a smoother blend from shade to shade.

UGH! Im scared to try it and ruin it. Maybe I should buy a few dresses (or maybe cheap t shirts) and test different methods to see what turns out the best?!

I really want it to look like the middle picture in the top row.

 

[ILuvShopping]

yea i would definitely experiment a little!

 

[GondolaGirl]

I have an Altered Couture Mag that has several pieces like that I will try to find it and check for you Tink!

 

[ILuvShopping]

i wonder what would happen if you used a sponge brush to brush it on? not sure if the brush strokes would turn out smooth or not but it might give you better control of the fading.

 

[GondolaGirl]

I haven't found the magazine yet, but there is something to vinegar not letting the colors overcome one another....
Tink have you tried it yet?

 

[mr85]

I just read that the best way to dip dye is to submerge the item in dye (maybe leaving the top section out if you want white) and then very gradually raise it a little bit at a time out of the dye. As the dye takes a while to 'take' to the fabric, the bits that come out first will be lighter. Never done it myself but I would guess that it would take some practice to get a good result!
goodluck.

 

[wishfulgirl]

http://www.diylife.com/2008/04/04/gradient-dip-dyed-tights/

 

[naughtymanolo]

I've done this on fabric before, it's quite easy.

the simplest method is to put the dye in a bucket at quite a strong color, but still at the consistency of water. wet your dress the whole thing or at least 6 inches past where you want the dye to stop, then dunk the hem in the dye just a little bit at a time and watch it bleed up with the wet fabric. Do it slowly and stop when you're happy with the effect. Put it out to dry.

there are all sorts of ways of achieving the same thing, you can fill a sauce bottle with very diluted dye and squirt in on slowly, or with one of the those spray bottles hair dressers use to wet small amounts of hair.

 

[SammiStyle]

i'm a textiles student and whenever i've wanted to dip dye stuff, i've dampened the fabric/clothing, and suspended it over a tray of dye, with just the bottom 2 inches actually in the dye. the dye will eventually bleed upwards and will have a really nice gradient effect, you can remove the item from the tray when you have the effect you want