Garden Variety Monsters

Dyeing & Painting Fabric

Dyeing Fabrics:

Here in the United States one of the most common fabric dyes is RIT dye. It is commonly found online, in craft stores such as Michaels or Joanns and grocery stores in the laundry isle. It is a warm-water dye for natural fibers, being cotton, satin, muslin, silk, hemp, etc. RIT will not dye synthetic fabrics, such as Nylon, Lycra, Spandex, Mylar, Vinyl, and the such. Some poly-cotton blends will dye, but no promises are made. Dye is like any other pigment and you can mix and match colors. So, for example, a box of Scarlet and a box of Chocolate will give a warm red/brown color. But, fabric dyes are like water colors and are translucent- a dark blue shirt dyed yellow will still be dark blue; a pink shirt dyed yellow will be a bright to medium orange. If you do not fully understand these concepts of color, you can look at a basic Color Wheel or go to http://www.colormatters.com/colortheory.html for an in depth look at color theory. I personally find it very interesting. Moving on. Your dye will have instructions in/on the box, so read those, but here are some basics:

Powdered dye is just that: DYE. If any dye-dust gets on anything- CLEAN IT OFF! It becomes active dye the second any moisture gets on it and may stain anything it touches.
Use Gloves. As far as the dye is concerned, skin is also a natural fiber, and yes, you will be that color for at least 3 days. Fingernails are the quickest to dye. And no, nothing gets it off quickly. Use gloves. Seriously.
Make sure you’re using enough dye for your fabric. It’s roughly 1 box= 2 shirts or 1 pair of pants. It’s always better to use more dye than not enough.
Use 1 cup of SALT (basic table salt) with every box of dye you use. It’s a chemical reaction. YOU NEED THE SALT.
If your fabric is wet before you put it in the dye, the color is more even. If you’re tie-dying, then have the fabric dry.
The hotter the water, the better/longer lasting the dye color.
The longer it sits in the dye, the better/longer lasting the dye color.
After Dying wash your garment in HOT Water with detergent at least twice before throwing it in with regular laundry. If you do not do this, residual dye may get on other clothing.
REMOVING DYE: yes, there are some products which can do this, but I’ve never had any great success with them. Be careful and wear clothes you don’t care about when dying.
Thoroughly rinse out whatever your dye vat was, be it a bucket or the washing machine.

Fabric Paint:

When using Fabric Paint, try to get a Flexible When Dry kind- otherwise your item may become stiff and rigid, and does not look as good, nor is as comfortable.

Brands such as Tulip or DecoArt So-Soft Fabric Paint are typical paints; they come in various sized tubes in lots of colors and various finishes, such as matte, glossy, glittery, pearl, and many more. These can be bought at most craft stores, such as Michaels or Joanns.

You can use the tip of the bottle, a paintbrush, your fingers, a feather, or whatever you want to apply the paint onto the fabric. A piece of cardboard, plastic, or many sheets of paper should be put in between layers of fabric (such as inside the shirt, separating front layer and back layer) to keep the paint from bleeding through.

The fabric should be kept flat until the paint is fully dry- usually 48-72 hours later. Care should be kept in mind when washing the fabric. Heat should be avoided, as over time it may break down the paint. Cold water wash and low/no heat dry is the best to maintain the paint.

Fabric Paint may not adhere to all fabric materials. Check packaging for usage information.

Fabric Markers:

Any marker could be used on fabric, I suppose, but it’s how it looks and how long it lasts that makes it worthwhile to purchase markers and crayons made to be used on fabric.

Fabric markers are sometimes called Paint Pens, although they may or may not actually have paint in them, but fabric ink instead. Any permanent marker, such as a Sharpie or Marks-A-Lot, will last a long time on fabric, yes, but it WILL bleed, and by that I mean that if you draw a straight line, it will start to feather out on the sides, and seep along the fabric fibers, and no longer be a straight line with crisp edges, but a kinda fuzzy looking line. However, since most of my creatures are with black outlines, I suppose a regular permanent marker would be the cheapest way to go. Your selection of colors is limited, however, and after about 5 washes it WILL fade.

Similar to Fabric Paint, a piece of cardboard, plastic, or many sheets of paper should be put in between layers of fabric (such as inside the shirt, separating front layer and back layer) to keep the ink from bleeding through. Read the instructions on the packaging for specific applying and washing information.

Care should be kept in mind when washing the fabric, and heat should be avoided, as over time it may break down the pigment in the marker/crayon. Cold water wash and low/no heat dry is the best to maintain the color.

Some brands, such as Marvy Uchida or Fabrico can be found online or at craft stores such as Michaels or Joanns.

Fabric Markers may not write on all fabric materials. Check packaging for usage information.