Welcome! I am excited about sharing what I have learned over the past 10 years of hand dyeing fabric with Procion MX dye. My goal is to post once a ‘lesson’ week (orders permitting) and answer questions as needed.
This first post will give you an idea of what you will need and where to get it. I will assume that you just want to try dyeing fabric to see if you like it, so we’ll keep the investment minimal. Some of the images show large quantities of an item. Don’t get overwhelmed and think you need a box of 120 latex gloves. Keep in mind that I buy dye by the pound, soda ash in 50 lb. bags and fabric in 100 yard rolls. I started experimenting on a very small scale and that is how we will start.
Here’s a ‘what you need and what would be nice list’ with comments:
| Old clothes and shoes. | The shirts and the shoes are the first to go! Been pretty lucky with pants, shorts and capris. | |
| Rubber or disposable gloves (latex, vinyl, nitrile) | Latex and powder doesn’t bother me so I use latex. I tried the big rubber gloves, but I prefer the fit of the latex. Also, the latex gloves are off-white and come in handy if I want to see the color of a mix - spread a little dye on the back of my hand. | |
| A place to work free of food and food preparation equipment (close to a sink). AND, away from air flow. | The dyes are non-toxic and soda ash is used in swimming pools. BUT, I don’t think you want to dye up a fat quarter in a storage container and then use it for leftover manicotti. The dye powder is very fine and can easily fly around. Don’t mix dye under a heating/air conditioning vent or in front of a fan. Use a dust mask when handling dye powder. (See ‘Kitchen Dyeing’ - separate post) You may want a plastic or oil cloth cover for your work surface to prevent damage and staining from dye. I have a molded plastic top work table that takes a lot of abuse. |
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| Measuring cups and spoons dedicated to dyeing (plastic or stainless). | I have several sets of spoons and two sets of cups. The basic set of spoons start at 1/8 t. and go to 1 T. I also have a 2 T. (coffee scoop) measure and a neat set of spoons I got at Wal-Mart®- Dash (1/8 t.), Pinch (1/16 t.) and Smidgen (1/32 t.) | |
| Containers for mixing and storing dye. | I have several types of containers depending on the amount of dye I’m mixing. If you are mixing small amounts, recycle plastic cups and tubs from yogurt, margarine, etc. 16-20 oz. water bottles are great for storing mixed dye. | |
| Containers for mixing and storing soda ash solution. | Recycle quart and gallon size milk, water, juice bottles. | |
| Containers for dyeing fabric. | For small pieces, fat eighths and fat quarters, the same small containers used for mixing dye work. Quart or gallon size freezer bags can also be used and reused. The freezer bags are stronger and will stand up to repeated uses. If using the bags, you will need a larger container, like a bucket or dish pan to store them when filled with fabric and dye. It guards against leaks and makes them easier to handle. | |
| White paper towels (optional). | I use white paper towels and terry shop towels. When wiping up my area, a wet white paper towel lets me know I ‘got everything’. You can’t always see the dye until it gets wet. | |
| Now, the good stuff! | ||
| Procion MX Dye | I purchase my dye from Dharma Trading and Pro Chemical & Dye. Other sources (among several) are Jacquard Products, G & S Dye (Canada), Blick Art Materials and Sax Arts & Crafts. WARNING! Going to any of these sites can cost you hours of enjoyment and fill your head with TONS of ideas. Proceed with caution. Both Dharma and Pro Chemical have starter kits. Pro Chemical also has sampler sets and small kits designed for dyeing fat eighths. The tie-dye kits have more stuff - gloves, urea, bottles, etc. What I would like to see is the tie-dye kit with instructions for fabric dyeing and a better choice of dye colors, but that’s just me. I have no vested interest in either company, but to get started, Pro Chemical offers, in my opinion, better starter kits and samplers to try out. For about $27.00 plus shipping, you can get a tie-dye kit and a Rainbow Gradation kit. Out of curiosity, I purchased a Rainbow Gradation kit for dyeing 30 fat eighths. I chose ‘Stones & Shells’ because they aren’t my BONG colors. I plan to experiment this week and post my results next. |
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| PFD (Prepared for Dyeing) Fabric | PFD or Prepared for Dyeing fabric means the fabric was not finished with sizing, optical brighteners, permanent press finish, etc. It may bleached and/or mercerized. It may be cotton, hemp, rayon, linen, bamboo, silk or a combination. A drop of water on dry PFD fabric is immediately absorbed. Dharma Trading has a nice selection of various PFD fabrics. BUT, you do not have to invest a lot of money to experiment. I bought 2 kinds of unbleached muslin at JoAnn Fabrics (two visits - two 50% off coupons - YES!). Twice, I washed/scoured the muslin in hot water with soda ash - about 1/2 c. for a medium load. Then I put a fat eighth of each, along with the Pimatex I regularly use, in a freezer bag along with dye and soda ash. Here is the result:  Both dyed slightly less intense than the Pimatex, with the cheaper muslin dyeing better than the premium muslin. (The premium muslin is nice stuff - Kona Muslin from Robert Kaufman) Buy either bleached or unbleached. Just make sure it does not have a permanent press finish. |
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| Soda Ash (Sodium Carbonate) - NOT baking soda or Sodium BIcarbonate | Soda Ash is the ‘fixer’. The chemical that helps the fibers react with and bind the dye. Soda Ash is used in swimming pools to raise the pH of the water. I purchase 50 lb. bags from a pool supply company. It comes in smaller quantities too. If you don’t want to pay the shipping from one of the online stores and have a pool supply store near you . . . get it there. Now, the people in the pool store may not know it’s called soda ash (this is a true story). I called several places closer to me to get soda ash and they thought I was nuts. Had no clue what I was talking about. Ah ha! I’ll out smart them next time - I’ll ask for the stuff that raises the pH. | |
| Salt (Optional) | Salt helps move the dye molecules out of the water and into the fiber. Some people use it, others don’t. I use salt. Generally I buy 40 lb. bags of coarse water softener salt. I keep table salt on hand too. Iodized or non-iodized doesn’t seem to make a difference. | |
| Urea (Optional) | Nitrogen - 46-0-0 fertilizer - comes in prill form (dry spheres). Generally used in tie-dye to help keep dyed items wetter longer. I use it to help dissolve dye and on the deck and walk in the winter to melt ice. I get 50 lb. bags from a local feed store. | |
Whew! That’s enough for today. Next week we’ll be be up to our elbows in dye. Alright, up to our knuckles!
Posted under Dye Class
Posted by Janet on January 4, 2009