MANDO
Super Freak
I know this is all second nature to many guys around here but for those not all too familiar with customizing and whatnot I thought this might be helpful.
-Never use a container you're going to cook or put food in. Get an old tupperware bowl or a butter spread container. Similarly a spoon is handy for stirring, but you don't want to eat your wheaties with it the next morning.
-A pair of cheap dishwashing gloves can be your best friends. Let them!
-Make sure your dye bath is piping hot. Doesn't have to be boiling but you want it steaming.
-Thoroughly wet the fabric making sure every inch is damp. Check the insides, up under pockets, underneath collars, etc. This will ensure an even dye.
-Any cosmetic work done to the outfit (i.e. removing pockets or buttons) has to be done prior to dying otherwise you'll get considerably lighter patches where the pockets were.
-If you're using powder dye make sure it dissolves fully in the hot the water before any fabric goes in. Stir and stir again.
-If you're using liquid dye make sure you shake it up first. Also liquid dye is much more concentrated but you can thin it out or even stretch it with water if you need to. As for heating it up I use a microwave safe container with a couple paper towels over the top of it to prevent “splattering”.
-Actual dye times will depend on your dye to water ratio as well the temperature of the bath itself and of course the type of material. Keep an eye on it especially if you're dying lighter color fabrics.
Remember you can always re-dye if your results are too light, but “un-dying” if they're too dark can be a pain in the neck.
-Fresh out of the dye bath the fabric is at least twice as dark as it will be after its rinsed and dried.
-Rinse. You can run the items under the tap to start, but I prefer to fill the kitchen sink up and let osmosis do the work as the residual dye is more-or-less sucked out by the water.
-Don't be too hasty to dispose of your dye bath. Wait and see how the piece looks after its dried. You can always heat it back up in the microwave if you need to go again. Make sure you give a quick stir after you heat it back up though.
-If you're impatient you can put thoroughly-rinsed pieces in your dryer and run a quick spin cycle then set the clothes up on a buck and finish drying them with a blow dryer. It works trust me.
-In the event you dye something too dark you're not screwed just use a tiny bit of laundry detergent in some hot water and gently wash the goods. This might inadvertently strip away some the outfit's original color though but it shouldn't be too much of a difference that you need to adjust your dye bath.
To a certain degree its best to think of Dye in terms of mixing paint: What colors would you mix to achieve the desired color? Say you have a pair of bluejeans that you want to make green. First thing you do is dye them yellow and see what result that gives you. If you were to just dye them green you'd likely end up with some shade of turquoise. I know how obvious that sounds but that train of thought can make things a lot easier.
-Never use a container you're going to cook or put food in. Get an old tupperware bowl or a butter spread container. Similarly a spoon is handy for stirring, but you don't want to eat your wheaties with it the next morning.
-A pair of cheap dishwashing gloves can be your best friends. Let them!
-Make sure your dye bath is piping hot. Doesn't have to be boiling but you want it steaming.
-Thoroughly wet the fabric making sure every inch is damp. Check the insides, up under pockets, underneath collars, etc. This will ensure an even dye.
-Any cosmetic work done to the outfit (i.e. removing pockets or buttons) has to be done prior to dying otherwise you'll get considerably lighter patches where the pockets were.
-If you're using powder dye make sure it dissolves fully in the hot the water before any fabric goes in. Stir and stir again.
-If you're using liquid dye make sure you shake it up first. Also liquid dye is much more concentrated but you can thin it out or even stretch it with water if you need to. As for heating it up I use a microwave safe container with a couple paper towels over the top of it to prevent “splattering”.
-Actual dye times will depend on your dye to water ratio as well the temperature of the bath itself and of course the type of material. Keep an eye on it especially if you're dying lighter color fabrics.
Remember you can always re-dye if your results are too light, but “un-dying” if they're too dark can be a pain in the neck.
-Fresh out of the dye bath the fabric is at least twice as dark as it will be after its rinsed and dried.
-Rinse. You can run the items under the tap to start, but I prefer to fill the kitchen sink up and let osmosis do the work as the residual dye is more-or-less sucked out by the water.
-Don't be too hasty to dispose of your dye bath. Wait and see how the piece looks after its dried. You can always heat it back up in the microwave if you need to go again. Make sure you give a quick stir after you heat it back up though.
-If you're impatient you can put thoroughly-rinsed pieces in your dryer and run a quick spin cycle then set the clothes up on a buck and finish drying them with a blow dryer. It works trust me.
-In the event you dye something too dark you're not screwed just use a tiny bit of laundry detergent in some hot water and gently wash the goods. This might inadvertently strip away some the outfit's original color though but it shouldn't be too much of a difference that you need to adjust your dye bath.
To a certain degree its best to think of Dye in terms of mixing paint: What colors would you mix to achieve the desired color? Say you have a pair of bluejeans that you want to make green. First thing you do is dye them yellow and see what result that gives you. If you were to just dye them green you'd likely end up with some shade of turquoise. I know how obvious that sounds but that train of thought can make things a lot easier.
