Sunday, April 15, 2007

FO#5 - dyeing clothes in the kitchen sink

For this project I used Dylon Permanent Fabric Dye in color # 55 (Burnt Orange), and just followed the instructions on the package:
1) Weigh dry fabric (I skipped this step). Wash and leave damp. Here is my damp laundry in one side of my kitchen sink. There is a white cotton top, a tan linen top, an old beige bra, and 2 pairs of Jockey Brand "Granny Panties."
2) Dissolve contents of packet in 4 cups warm water, stirring thoroughly. I used a stainless steel spatula for the stirring, since I figured if the dye was safe stainless steel sinks, it'd be fine for spatulas too.
3) & 4) Fill stainless steel sink with enough warm water for fabric to move freely. Add 4 Tbs of salt and stir to dissolve.

5) Add the dissolved dye, stirring well.

6) Place damp, unfolded fabric into sink.

7) Dye for 1 hour. Stir constantly for the first 15 minutes, then regularly for the next 45 minutes. The goal is to keep the fabric submerged in the dye for as much as possible. At the end of the hour, drain the dye from the sink. (Note that the beige bra did not take up any dye at all. I think that's because it's all synthetic fibers.)

8) Rinse fabric in cold water until water becomes clear. I just kept filling the sink with cold water and swishing around the clothes till the water was orange. Then I'd drain and repeat. After this I machine washed the clothes in hot water with regular laundry detergent.

9) Dry away from heat and light. Here are the results! And yes, I am even posting my drawers on the internet. The elastic band in them also did not take up any dye. I like how the flowers still show through in the pair on the left. Much cooler than before, yes?



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