Dyeing a dress?

[Twizzler0171]

As some of you know, I do Civil War re-enacting. I'm usually portraying a male soldier, and so I usually don't have to worry about dresses or anything like that.

At most of the events I go to, however, they have dances. I was given a dress so that I could go to these without having to be a soldier. Believe me, it's embarrassing when you have to do that and you're a female. *Nod*

Anyways, after some modification (we still need to add the ribbon, but it won't take that long), we were able to get it to fit me. The only problem with it is... is that it is white. And that's not really a friendly color for the outside dances. Most of them are inside, but there are a couple that are done outside.

So... we decided to dye it a royal blue color. We got the dye yesterday, and after mom sews on the ribbon, we're going to wash and then dye it or whatever she's going to do.

Does anyone have any tips on dyeing clothes? I believe the materials the dress is made out of are cotton and silk - but I'm not sure. How can I tell the difference between them and polyester, which I've heard can't be dyed? And is there anything else you think I should know before dyeing the dress?

[DiscordantNote]

Well, my mom had to dye silk for a project of hers before, and she had to use the washer to dye it (because it was a rather large piece of fabric). If you do that with your dress, be sure all of the dye is flushed out of there after you're done, otherwise it'll end up on your next batch of laundry.

[Rachel]

i think it depends on what dye you use. if you have one of the dylon dyes where you use it in the washing machine, do what DiscordantNote says and do *at least* one wash afterwards of only black clothes or of like dark blue towels or something, or just and empty one just to make sure that the dye is washed out the system.

if it is a hand dye, i have never done that, but from instinct i would guess to make sure there is enough water to cover the whole dress as if its not completely covered it wont dye evenly.

Goodluck!!

oh, and twiz, post pictures!!

[smudgeoffudge]

Or you could try dying it with natural dyes. You'll get a funky color, but this is a civil war reinactment dance. I know yellow onion skins can make yellow, green hulls from pecans can stain things a kind of brownish-yellow, tea can make brown. You can get beets to make red. I am not sure which color would make blue, maybe blueberrys. But then it would end up being a kind of greyish blue probably. It would be fun to experiment on an old dress and not on this one, cause you could ruin it.

[Twizzler0171]

Well, my mom had to dye silk for a project of hers before, and she had to use the washer to dye it (because it was a rather large piece of fabric). If you do that with your dress, be sure all of the dye is flushed out of there after you're done, otherwise it'll end up on your next batch of laundry.

Yep, my mother and I were just going to run a load with nothing in when it was through. =)

oh, and twiz, post pictures!!

Of course! Unfortunately, I don't know how long it will take my mom to get them developed - I'm still waiting on her to develop some from April. o_o

And I didn't quote this part, but it's a Rit dye, and it's made out of powder - so it'll be going through the washer.

Or you could try dying it with natural dyes. You'll get a funky color, but this is a civil war reinactment dance. I know yellow onion skins can make yellow, green hulls from pecans can stain things a kind of brownish-yellow, tea can make brown. You can get beets to make red. I am not sure which color would make blue, maybe blueberrys. But then it would end up being a kind of greyish blue probably. It would be fun to experiment on an old dress and not on this one, cause you could ruin it.

Funnily enough, we were talking about something similar this weekend, heh. There's a sort of flower - can't remember the name, Dyer's or Painter's something - but it's yellow, and when you boil it, it creates a purple dye. Really weird. Maybe I'll do that for a future dress of some sort - a day dress, most likely - but not this one, because like you said, it could ruin it.

[everconfused]

Twiz, from someone who dyes things different colors on a semi-regular basis for costumey type things ...

First, the fabric the dress is made of is important. Some fabrics either won't take dye or won't take it correctly. Also, sometimes a cheaper thread is used and that will not dye (had that happen once, dyed something black and it had this awful greenish yellow thread).

If you're using the powder dye (which is a much bigger mess than the liquid IMHO), what I would do is first boil a pot of water and mix the dye in that, then add it to the full of uber hot water washing machine, with the agitator set for delicate so it can mix without splashing everywhere.

Once it's mixed well, should only take a couple of minutes, add the dress. Be sure to soak the dress in water first. Things dye better if they're wet, and between having the fabric wet and pre-mixing the dye, you'll have less chance of a splotchy outcome.

I'd dye the dress before I added any trim - just to be sure that the dress will take the dye, that it doesn't shrink or do anything "fun" to the fabric and also sometimes the trim can end up shrinking. Not a good thing.

After I dye, I then will just refill the washer with cold water and soap and run whatever I've dyed through a regular wash cycle. Dark colors, I wash twice, first with soap, then just cold water. That should set the dye and clear out any extra. Then run a short wash with soap and water to clean out the machine.

[hiddenneggs]

Couple things I can suggest, thanks to my wife's expertise:

1) You definitely want to determine what sort of material it is, and a good way to do so is a burn test. Snip a little piece from where it won't show, and burn it -- my lady wife suggests Googling for guides to what specific results mean, especially since blends can be tricky. (But even I know that if it melts, it's a synthetic and won't take Rit well.)

2) Having done many a washing-machine dye job, she highly recommends adding bleach to the "empty" run of the machine afterward.

[luv2lindy77]

Couple things I can suggest, thanks to my wife's expertise:

1) You definitely want to determine what sort of material it is, and a good way to do so is a burn test. Snip a little piece from where it won't show, and burn it -- my lady wife suggests Googling for guides to what specific results mean, especially since blends can be tricky. (But even I know that if it melts, it's a synthetic and won't take Rit well.)

2) Having done many a washing-machine dye job, she highly recommends adding bleach to the "empty" run of the machine afterward.

I also recommend the burn test. It's very reliable.

As far as rinsing the machine afterward, do one full empty wash with detergent or bleach, then do one additional rinse cycle, but throw in an old white sock or washcloth or something white that you don't mind ruining. If it comes out white still, the washer is clean. If not, do another wash cycle.

Have fun at the dance! ^_^

[Twizzler0171]

Thanks for the help everyone. =)

Mom has already dyed it - I told her to wait, but she didn't listen to me, heh. But it turned out very nicely - the lace and ribbon turned into a sky blue color, and the underdress became the royal blue. It's really pretty - I can't figure out how to describe it, heh.

We didn't really want to risk the dryer, so we just air dryed it, but I think that was better for it, anyways?

[Forest_Majesty]

Smarties for you
Air drying it was definately a good idea, in most cases it is much safer:
Dryer= Dye Dying (A.K.A. mess- liked my alliteration so yeah )

[everconfused]

Pics! I want to see pics of you in this dress now Sounds like it turned out great! Yay