Tie-Dye Tips and Tricks

Tie-dying is a fun and easy activity for people of all ages.  You can tie-dye just about anything: shirts, socks, aprons, scrap fabric, underwear, and more!  And with the help of the internet, you can find several different tie-dying techniques and pick the one that works the best for you!  We have rallied the internet and have complied the best tie-dying tips for you.  Here they are:

No Dye Tie-Dye: Make super-easy tie-dye shirts without the traditional mess by using permanent markers!  Supplies needed are: shirts, permanent markers, rubber-bands or hair-ties, and rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover.  First take the shirts and scrunch/ball them up placing random rubber bands along the way.  You can do an internet search on how to create different designs depending on how you fold/ball up your shirt.  Next take permanent markers and color away!! After coloring, drop a little bit of rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover on the shirt, this will make the colors bleed together.  Allow the shirts to dry, then unravel and you will have a tie-dyed shirt! Check out this video for video demonstration.

Create Dye Designs:  Do you ever wonder how people can create cool designs using tie-dye?  Us too!  Learn how to make: rosettes, spirals, electric bunches, stripes, ovals, squares and more from this instruction from prochemical.com

Traditional Tie-Dye: Check out this webpage for super-easy instructions on tie-dying the old fashion way.  

Natural Dyes:  If you are weary of tie-dying because you don’t trust the chemical properties of the dyes, then we have found the website for you.  Check out Twenty-First Century Lady’s website for how to make your own natural dyes.  She gives you step by step instructions on how to create your own natural dyes as well as what you can use to create certain colors.  For example, you can use turmeric spice to create yellows, tea/coffee to create browns, and flowers to create several different colors.  This great for the eco-conscious mom or a group.

Best Shirts to Tie-Dye: The best shirts to tie-dye are 100% cotton white shirts.  The dyes adhere best to natural fibers, like cotton, and will provide the most vibrant and stunning colors.  Shirts For Anything recommends using 100% cotton White Shirt from Gildan® or 100% cotton White Shirt from Port Authority ®.  You can also find 100% cotton shirts at your local craft store.

Washing Tie-Dye: Wash your tie-dye by itself the first time.  If you wash your tie-dye with other clothes the first time, then it is likely that your other clothes will come out with a new hue or a subtle tint.  Wash your tie-dye in cold water and with your regular laundry detergent.

Buket Tie-Dye: This is a great tie-dye method for a party or when tie-dying several items at once.  Check out this link  from Rit Studio for step-by-step instructions on bucket tie-dye.

Manufactured Tie-Dyes:  Aren’t in the mood for tie-dying but want the look?  There are manufacturers out there that mass produce tie-dye apparel! This is great if you would like to order bulk tie-dye shirts for an event, and then you can even have them personalized by screen-printing.  Contact Shirts For Anything  for more information about vendors or production.

Long live the hippie in you, and we hope that these tips and tricks help you create the perfect tie-dye shirt!