How to Tie Dye a Shirt
Tie-dye hit the height of popularity in the 1960s, and since then has moved in and out of fashion. Regardless of trends, you can tie-tye a shirt yourself to get the exact pattern and colors you want. Tie-dyeing requires creativity and attention to detail to get the spirals, swirls, circles and depth of color that you desire. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Things You'll Need
- White T-shirt
- Rubber bands
- Rubber gloves
- Soda ash
- Buckets
- Dye
- Water
- Squeeze bottles
- Plastic bag
- Washing Machine
Instructions
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1
Fold or wrap your T-shirt to yield the pattern you want. For example, if you want concentric circles, grab the T-shirt in the middle and wrap a rubber band about 2 inches down from the center. Keep wrapping rubber bands down the length of the shirt until you get to the end. Fold your shirt with horizontal folds to get vertical stripes or in vertical folds to get horizontal stripes.
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2
Soak the T-shirt in a solution of 1 cup soda ash to 1 gallon of warm water for up to 15 minutes.
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3
While the T-shirt is soaking, mix your dye according to package directions. Fiber-reactive dyes work best for cotton. In general, use about 1/2 cup of dye per 2 to 3 gallons of hot water. Put the mixed dye into the squeeze bottle. Have a bottle for each color you want to use.
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4
While wearing the rubber gloves, squeeze the colors onto the parts of the shirt where you want them.
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5
Put the dyed shirt into a plastic bag and leave it for at least four hours and up to 24 hours.
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6
Remove the shirt from the bag. Run it under cold water, then under progressively warmer water until the water runs clear. Remove the rubber bands.
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7
Prefill the washing machine with hot water and 1/4 cup of professional textile detergent. Wash the T-shirt. Let it air-dry.
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Tips & Warnings
Cover all surfaces with plastic or newspaper to prevent staining.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
