Fabric Dyeing Questions

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July/August Questions

I have a question, and I hope maybe you can help me.
I have a short white skirt from Club Monaco (I don't know if your familiar with the company-if that helps in anyway); there is no lining in the skirt, and it's kind of see-through but it's made of 100% cotton. The bottom of the skirt has an eyelet trim.
anyways, I would like to dye it black, and was wondering what your suggestion would be. I want it to be BLACK...I'm afraid if I do it myself it will turn gray or something or not dark enough...I want to do it myself, but I'm a little apprehensive, I've never done this before. Also, the zipper is plastic, but white, will the dye get the thread of the zipper, so that only the teeth end up still white?
I appreciate any help and direction you can give me, Thank You very much for your time and attention
yours truly,
Shadia
Dear Shadia,
Your apprehension is well founded. Black is the hardest color to get, even with reactive dyes. Here are a couple of other caveats: the skirt is almost certainly sewn with polyester thread, which will not take the dye. You are right, the zipper tape and teeth will not dye either. Plus my guess is that the eyelet lace is part polyester & will take the dye at a different color from the rest. It is really not worth the trouble. If you want to try it anyway, check out www.dharmatrading.com for instructions on using the reactive dyes. Don't even bother to try rit dyes, you will definitely get a sort of lukewarm charcoal. If you absolutely adore this skirt then I suggest that you take it to a seamstress & have one made in the black fabric of your choice.
Dyeing really is fun & I hate to be discouraging! If you are interested in messing around with fabric & color, get some prepared-for-dyeing stuff from dharma & have at it.
Jennifer

Dear Jennifer,
I have a wedding dress that is light gold. I would like to make it gradually darker toward the bottom. How do I do this?
Shelley
Dear Shelley,
This is a tough question to answer. It all depends on the fiber content of your dress. Wedding dresses are often polyester or acetate which do not take dye easily. On top of that, many newer dresses are marked "do not wash & do not dry clean." This means they cannot be submerged in any liquid. In addition, there is the trim factor: what kind of lace, beading, or other trim is involved?

If you are willing to experiment, and the fabric is silk or another natural fiber, then you could try spraying dilute reactive dye with a spray bottle. I really would not try this without a similar fabric on which to experiment with the process.

If you would like to confer further, please let me know the details of the dress & I'll see what I can do!!
Jennifer

hi dizzy
I got a dark blue shirt that 100% cotton and it accidentally got bleach at some little part of it. At the part that got bleach turn into red in color. Can I dye it so it will dark blue again?If yes, how?-AMY-
Dear Amy,
Unfortunately chlorine bleach does something mysterious to cotton fabric. When bleach spots affect cotton, the fabric does not take dye again. So it can't be overdyed or redyed. I have had this happen myself. Sorry.
Jennifer

Hi! I found your e-mail address at: http://www.fabrics.net/dizzylettuce.asp and was wondering if you could give me some advice? I love rich colors and so decided to make my duvet cover out of a very saturated blue shantung silk. I pre-washed it and made it (even though I knew it would lose its nice crisp hand, it still maintained the strong color and the subtle sheen) and its been wonderful. But I've noticed the area around the foot of the bed is looking decidedly faded. That part of the bed is under the window and so I'm assuming the sun has had an effect on the color! (My cat's also sleep there...It couldn't be due to oils or anything, right?!?) I paid a lot of money for the fabric (and put a lot of time into making it) so would like to save it if I can...Do you think this could be sucessfully dyed back to a nice rich saturated color again? I am okay if the shade of blue is not an exact match...just as long as it is a rich strong blue. Also, do you know of any ways to prevent more fading? (fabric treatments or something?) Thank you VERY much in advance for any help that you can give me...I am pretty unfamiliar with dyeing!
Again, Thanks!!!
Jessika
Dear Jessika,
I am sure that your bedcover is beautiful. I love rich deep silk, too. I made my bedcover in linen (which I dyed a beautiful avocado green) so that it would withstand cats, dog, etc & could be washed frequently.

Sun fading is difficult to deal with. Not only does it fade unevenly but it also weakens the fabric. You can try dyeing it again. Go to www.dharmatrading.com, request a catalog, look at their reactive dye colors (inside the front cover), read all the instructions. You should be able to do it in your washing machine. This is not really a long term solution, just a fix. You should be able to get another year or so out of the fabric that way. In some cases, I have redyed silk that turned out better than it was originally. But the results are not really predictable, so you will just have to try it.

Cats are off the hook, they do not cause fabric fading. I am pretty sure it is sun fading. Silk does not withstand direct sun very well at all. As an alternative, you could try rayon, which takes a dye beautifully, is washable, & is fairly light fast. I will ask Judith, my mentor at fabrics.net, if she knows any preventative for sun fading other than window treatments.

Have fun & keep me posted!!
Jennifer

Hi, Jennifer.

I bought a beautiful, unique linen skirt from Coldwater Creek several years ago. I had it in one of those laundry sorting things in the basement over the winter. Unfortunately (due to my poor organizational skills) it was directly on the floor, and too close to the drain. Due to a clogged pipe near the washer, water with bleach in it overflowed to the drain, and the clothes in the sorter were soaked. Of course, this lovely skirt was a victim.

I could have just asked my question without telling you all that, but I didn't want to deprive you of the whole picture : ) I'd like to dye the skirt a uniform color. The bleached spots are front and back, and very conspicuous. The original color of the skirt is sage green. It's not a very tight weave. Only about 10% of the skirt is damaged, but it's quite conspicuous, and couldn't be covered with a sweater. What's your best advice for the type of dye and color I can use? Ideally, I'd like the end result to be as close to the original sage green color as possible. Is there hope?

Thanks so much for your assistance.
Nancy
Dear Nancy,
I am sorry, I believe that the answer is "no hope" for your skirt. Unfortunately, when chlorine bleach hits a fabric, it chemically alters it so that it will not take the dye - neither rit nor reactive dyes will adhere.

Chalk it up to the occasional laundry disaster & find another beautiful skirt. If you are inclined, you can look for a treasure at resale or consignment. Forgive yourself & remember that there are tons of clothes in the world!!! And the perfect new thing is coming to you.

Jennifer

Hi Jennifer,
Is it possible to dye regular, white sheers with tea? I purchased white ones, and realized I can't use them. I'd like them to look more tan or antiqued. Please help! Thanks in advance!
Dear Angela,
It really depends on the fabric content of the sheers. In general, dyes and tea do not stick well on synthetic fabrics. Also, keep in mind, tea dyes things brownish, & if you want gold or yellowish-cream, you will need to add a bit of reactive dye to the mix. You can always try out tea dyeing on the sheers that you have. See some of my previous replies regarding tea dyeing. Also, search at www.askjeeves.com for information on tea dyeing. This is a great resource!!
Have fun,
Jennifer

Dear Jennifer,
My husband has a 1969 VW showcar that he's re-doing for a car show coming up at the end of August. However, the new carpet we bought doesn't quite match the old tweed apoulstry that we don't want to replace. I've been everywhere! Can you tell me if it would be OK to use a fabric dye or paint while the tweed is still in the car? I need an answer QUICK!
Thanks, Tina
Dear Tina,
A quick search of the internet turned up quite a few resources for carpet dyeing. In fact, one resource is for auto detailing:
http://www.topoftheline.com/
I also recently met some folks who custom dye & refurbish carpets. They are located around the U.S. Check out their site for the office nearest you:
carpets2dye4.com
Good luck!!
Jennifer

I am planning an inexpensive wedding and will most likely be wearing a bridesmaids dress for the ceremony. However, most of the dress styles I'm interested in only come in certain colors. Is it possible to get a dress of this type dyed? I was told by one store that the colors would run as soon as the dress got wet. Can a dress be dyed more than once? Thanks.
Nancy
Dear Nancy,
Well, it all depends. 1. The fiber content of the dress, 2. the color it is, 3. the color you want it to be. It sounds like you are talking about an acetate taffeta or satin dress; yes, the color is unstable & cannot be redyed. Also, in general, you cannot dye anything a lighter color. So if your dress is baby pink, for example, you can only dye it darker pink or red.

There is one firm that will dye individual pieces of clothing, & you can certainly talk to them about what you have in mind. Take a look at www.sampledyeing.org. They do not guarantee the outcome, and it may be expensive, thereby negating your idea of an inexpensive wedding.

In my humble opinion, it would be far easier to find a dress at resale or consignment that suits you just as it is!! Congratulations & have fun!
Jennifer

 

You can ask Jennifer questions at dizzylettuce@Fabrics.net.

Jennifer Thompson Miller: I love my work in beautiful textiles, color, trim, and design! I am a devoted student of fashion history and love vintage and vintage-inspired looks. For many years, my main focus was fashion sewing, using natural fibers in beautiful colors. In recent years, much to my delight, I have learned color mixing and silk dyeing. This has added a vibrant, versatile dimension to my fashion design.

I learned design and needlework from my mother and grandmother, and I am very grateful for their inspiration and instruction. Some of my earliest memories are spending time in the fabric store, while my mother designed and picked out fabrics for glamorous outfits. From the age of ten, my mother and other fashion-conscious ladies would ask my opinions on fabrics that they were combining.

About Dizzylettuce

Dizzylettuce is a line of unique, creative, beautiful, and luxurious silk accessories - triangles, rectangles, and circles - that can be worn as shawl, wrap, waist and hip wrap, sash, exciting ensemble layer, and suit or coat accessory.

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