How to Make Tae Kwon Do Belts in Art Class
Tae kwon do is a martial art that was developed in Korea. Originally, tae kwon do had no belts, but they were eventually instituted to rank the skill level of martial artists. There are eight different color belts used to rank tae kwon do students, but the colors vary depending on the martial arts school. Each color represents the skill level of the wearer or student. Making these belts in an arts and crafts class can be simple with the right materials. All you need is the right material and some dye to make the right colors.
Things You'll Need
- White cotton cloth (16-inches wide and 82-inches long)
- Tailor's tape measure
- Yardstick
- Clothing marker
- Scissors
- Seven buckets
- Water
- Dye (yellow, orange, green, blue, brown, red and black in color)
- Rubber gloves
- Clothesline
- Clothespins
Instructions
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1
Lay the white cotton cloth out its full length and width on an 8-foot table. Measure and mark the cloth across its width every 2 inches with the tailor's tape measure. Move down the length of the cloth one foot and measure across its width again, every two inches. Continue moving one foot down the length of the cloth, marking across its width every 2 inches, until you reach the end of the length.
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Set the yardstick on the first two-inch mark and draw a dotted line down the length of the cloth. Move the yard stick down the length of the cloth, drawing dotted lines down the full length of the cotton. Cut out the first 2-inch strip of cloth, making a piece of cloth 2-by-82-inches long. Repeat the steps on each 2-inch measurement until you have eight 2-by-82-inch pieces of white cotton cloth.
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3
Set out all seven buckets and fill the buckets with water until they are half full. Put one color of dye in each bucket, giving you the seven different colors needed for the tae kwon do belts. Make sure you stir in the dye until all the water turns the desired color.
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Place one 2-by-82-inch piece of white cotton cloth in each bucket. Let the cotton cloth soak for 30 minutes. Put on your rubber gloves and remove each piece of cloth from each bucket. Squeeze out the excess water from the material.
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String a clothesline up and tie it off at least six feet off the floor. Fold the colored pieces of cloth over the clothesline and secure the cloth with a clothespin. Let the cloth dry. Inspect each piece of cloth to ensure that the full color desired runs down the entire length of the cloth. Place the cloth back into the appropriate dye if the color is not even.
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Tips & Warnings
Leave the 2-by-82-inch cloth strip that you did not dye white to make the eighth belt.
Dye can easily stain your clothing, so use caution when handling dyed material that is still wet.
Wash each dyed belt by itself for the first time so it does not bleed its color into other clothing.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
