DYEING...............

[yogitunes]

Just wondered if you guys ever DYE anything? and what proceedures you use.....

Right now I'm dying faded black jeans, 1 bottle RIT dye Black and 1/2 cup table salt, I have a 5 gallon tabletop washer with a stainless steel tub, with the little agitator, and the motor/trans that sits on top, and I put this on top the stove with a low flame, with it running/agitating, for about 2 hours per load, I then transfer the jeans overnight to the outside clothes line, just to make sure the color soaks in, in the morning I run them thru a cold rinse in the regular washer and machine dry, the color holds for a few more months to getter better wear and tear out of them, before their too ripped and worn, and then they get tossed....

 

[frigilux]

Wow, you have the process down to a science!

I used to dye black jeans on the range in a water-bath canner. I say 'used to', because one night, after more than a few gins, I slopped a fair amount of the water down the front of my white Maytag gas range and onto the kitchen carpet---this was in my warehouse apartment.

It permanently stained the range and, of course, ruined the carpet*. I've not dyed anything since.

*It was not my idea to have a carpeted kitchen. My landlord converted a business into a warehouse apartment for me while I was in Seattle for one summer. Upon my return, I was horrified to find commercial office-style carpeting in both the kitchen and bathroom. Neither are places I would ever choose to carpet.

 

[duetboy]

Set your color with...

Vinegar. I used to help a costume designer do tons of dyeing and we would set our color with a cup of Vinegar in a cold water bath after coming out of the boiling dye. You can also, if you're in a hurry, set the dye directly in the dye bath by adding in 1 cup of vinegar after your time is up. Keep rinsing until the water runs clear and your dye should set.

Holler if you need more information.

duetboy

 

[yogitunes]

Thanks Jeff

I haven't dyed in a while, and forgot about the vinegar...

I learned a few tricks from the guys at a local DYE factory many years ago, and I remember the steaming baths that they would soak/dye denim in a dark blue or black solution mixed with salt, and then they would wind the material onto a big roll, and then this was transfered to a vinegar type bath, no rinsing was done, it dried with the dark color....

I used to get dark dyes and salt from them rather than use RIT, it was darker and lasted longer as long as I boiled the water while dyeing...

 

[dj-gabriele]

Hi!
I did it a couple of times this year, once for bed linens and once for a sofa cover.
I simply put the stuff I want to dye in the washer, put in 1kg of table salt and the open dye box. Run a 60°C cycle and when it's done, I'm done. Just to make sure the garment won't spill any more colour I run a quick cycle to have more rinsing.

 

[mixfinder]

Slowly

Dye will stain the mineral deposits on the cabinet making it hard to clean. I allow the washer to fill first and then I carefully add liquid dye (more controlled and seems to hold longer while being more expensive). Start the machine on gentle agitation to prevent excessive splashing and carefully add the pre wetted fabric to be dyed. Let it agitate one period and reset for the second. Rinse twice, once with salt and once with vinegar. When done dyeing, run the washer with a full load, regular cycle and 2 cups of bleach to clean away any remaining pigments.
Boiling is a better way for the original dyeing process, but it requires constant stirring to prevent lighter streaks as the fabrics float. For fading fabrics a simple hot water/dye touch should help. Washing denum inside out helps to reduce crocking.