Dip'n Dye and Tie-Dye on a T-Shirt

1.   Tie a piece of cotton cord around the chest area of the T-shirt and wind it around several times. Tie a tight knot at the end to secure the cotton cord. The area with the tied-on cotton cord will appear the lightest after the tie-dyeing process.

2.   Pour 5 liters of 30-60°C hot water in a tub with 500g fine household salt.

3.   Wear plastic gloves and begin the dyeing with the lightest of the chosen colours using the dip'n dye technique. Dissolve half a bottle of batik colour (50ml) and 100g fixing agent. You may read more about the mixing ratio on the batik colour package – eg. if large quantities of fabric and colour need to be adjusted. NB: Using several tubs may be an advantage as all the colours may be prepared in advance allowing the process to run smoothly.

4.   Gently dip the T-shirt up and down in the dye bath for 5-10 minutes - depending on the desired colour intensity.

5.   Now dip the T-shirt in the tub with the next darkest colour. Continue this procedure with a colour change to a darker shade each time.

6.   Rinse the T-shirt after the last dye bath in clean, lukewarm water. Change the rinsing water two or three times, remove the cotton cords and rinse one last time.

A TIP   Half a bottle of colour (50 ml) in 5 liters of water is sufficient for fully dyeing two T-shirts. This amount, however, is sufficient for dyeing approx. 8 T-shirts in the same solution when using the dip'n dye technique.

Another variant   See also inspiration No. 13068.