We have an old cotton slipcover waiting to be dyed, but just thinking of finding a space and a tub that's large enough for the fabric to not be bunched up, moving hot water across the floor, having to stir it all without splashing any on the floor or turning the cat orange... it's enough to keep it on our "to-do someday" list. But we just heard about iDye, a fabric dye made to be tossed into the washing machine, and it seems worth trying out...
The typical grocery store dyes (Rit, etc) are powders that you open, mix with boiling water and gingerly stir. Its almost guaranteed that you'll get get something accidentally stained in the process when you use them, and it's very hard to dye large pieces evenly because the fabric bunches. One of the great things about iDye is that its a sealed dye packet that dissolves in water. You just toss the dye in the washing machine, run it for 30 minutes adding salt or vinegar (depending on your fabric), wash it out and that's it. So you don't have to get pans, clothes you are wearing, spoons or even the bathtub stained with dye. And there's no cleanup. We assume you could even use this in a laudromat without endangering the person who uses the machine after you, but would love to hear from readers who have used it to reassure us on this.
iDye comes in 38 colors — including 8 colors for polyesters and nylons (although it looks like you need to use the stovetop method for these fabrics). There's even a Color Remover which you can use to lighten or remove the color from fabric without using bleach. We'll post our results here after we use it, and have gotten some awesome tips on dying fabrics from helpful AT readers in this post.
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>>> Available online here (with nice photos of the colors)
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Comments (35)
Rit dyes can also be used in washing machines, but i'm too scared to try it for fear of staining the machine itself (i'm a renter) or whatever i put in afterwards. i doubt iDye is really much different.
uh....no, with rit dye you CAN use it in your washing machine. just read the rit dye package. rit also has a color remover product as well. I've been a rit-dying fiend most of my life (yes, dying many, many slipcovers), and i imagine the only real difference between this and rit is the mark-up.
1. The packaging in gorgeous.
2. If this works, my life will never be the same.
Keep us posted, AT!
and yes, there are no concerns about any of the dye carrying over into the next load so long as there are no obvious dye puddles. even so, i have recently gotten in the habit of making my next load a darks load just in case.
Yeah I've used the rit dye in the washing machine and had no adverse effects (no staining, didnt affect later washes). Its actually pretty easy.
okay, snotty old me just looked at the link, and while this is more expensive than rit, $3.50 certainly isn't going to break the bank. i was deceived by the swanky looking package. and this certainly expands rit's sometimes limited palette (but i usually mix my own). sorry i'm so grumpy today!
I've also used rit dye in my washing machine. I just run a rinse cycle when I'm done -- and I make sure not to wash whites as the first load after the process.
Rit is horrible. Really, really horrible. I've used it in the past to refresh black denim. It not only didn't work (and yes, I followed the direction to a T), but the color didn't set well and came off when I wore the jeans.
As for clean-up, it was a nightmare. My washing machine was ruined for a very long time. Anything I washed had a black tinge to it. Even now some of the plastic in the machine is still dyed!
Hm, I know there are supposedly no carry-over effects, but in college I had a whole load of laundry dyed pink after a roommate decided she wanted red curtains...
I think you're right. Rit with markup. Pretty packing though. What's this with boiling and using pans to dissolve powders? Just buy liquid Rit.
In the UK, Dylon make a dye specifically for machines. I've used it many many times with great results. The dye powder goes in the machine first, then salt and last the clean damp items to be dyed. It's especially important to wash any new fabric first, to remove any manufacturing residue (or something like that..) Colours mix, so blue dye will turn red fabric purple, etc. I've also mixed different coloured powders together for more colour variety. And to get as much out of every pack as possible, i deliberately add an extra item or two to the wash cycle that immediately follows the dying. (It's supposed to rinse away all the remaining dye, but I like to use it to alter the colours of the added stuff just a little.) After that, I usually do a dark wash first just to absolutely sure nothing untoward happens. I've never had any problems, just a lot of fun experimenting!
Rit isn't horrible. It's actually pretty dependable, although refreshing denim--with all the surface coatings on commercial denim--is disappointing. And Rit makes a color removal agent, as well. And it comes in a liquid.
I've dyed miles of yardage and yarns. Dyeing a ready made slip cover is a lot trickier, because the wear patterns on seams, corners, etc., will take dye differently than the flat parts.
This looks cute, and it's not a lot more expensive, but why? Did the original poster even try it?
Oh and the iDye is good for only 2 to 3 pounds of fabric. That's not much--Jacquard dyes are usually for fabric artists--paintings, etc., not for dyeing a slip cover.
If you have issues with the washing machine having stains after running it a second cycle with detergent to clean, a magic eraser cleans things up easily.
I'm so sick of "i" this and "i" that. The dye photograph is pretty though, as is the packaging. I just wish it had a different name. I usually use dylon powder or procion dyes so I am used to dying with powder and have no problems with it. I'm not comfortable with putting dye in my washing machine though. I like to be able to monitor the colour by hand anyway.
There are better dyes out there than Rit. It often makes a difference what type of fabric you are working with. Try this page
http://www.dharmatrading.com/products/dyes.html
for some basic information.
I don't know if I'll ever dye anything in the washing machine again... seems like a really good idea, and I got decent results, but not quite perfect enough! Followed all the directions exactly, but still ended up with a few dark splotches of dye on my couch slipcovers. Makes it look like something got spilled on them! It's not super noticeable, but not great, either. It's just too much fuss for average results.
Used it, love it. Didn't leave yuck in the machine, and they had three different purples to choose from, unlike Rit, which I could only find one yucky purple. I dyed a poly/cotton lightweight duvet, so I got one of each kind and threw them both in the wash. The thread didn't take the color (too poly, I guess?) but I kind of like the contrasting white stitching on the purple fabric.
well the 'i' this and 'i' that thing comes from our me-centric society.
the iDye sunblocker is something I want to check out. Penetrates clothing to block harmful UV rays from the sun. does that mean sunblock through your clothes? pretty cool
We've used this on a cotton duvet cover and set of sheets. Worked really well in our home washing machine, no mess, very bright colors and even dyeing. We did the sheets orange and the duvet cover yellow, but the yellow was SO vibrant that we ended up dyeing it again with a darker shade. Would definitely use it again.
I remember Rit dye staining all the plastic on my mom's washing machine when I was on a tie-dyeing kick as a kid, but that was a circa 1977 washing machine with circa 1987 dye--maybe it's easier to use now, but I remember it being really messy.
I've never used the product but there are so many more colors to choose from, I'll give it a try. My kids have all grown up so I am going through my house, making every room over to suit myself and trying to do it with thrift store finds, paint and craigslist finds so this will come in handy. For those of you who have used Rit dye in the washing machine, here's what you do. After running the dye bath and emptying the washing machine, run a full load of hot water with 1 cup of chlorine bleach in it all the way through. Voila! No more dye to worry about. I've always done this and thought everyone else knew how to remove the dye staining the tub.
Rit Dyeing tips, from a former costume shop dye bitch:
Rit works 1000x better in hot water.
Use a bigger pot. I don't care how big the pot you're using is, use a bigger one. You want the fabric to move freely and easily in the pot.
Use more dye than the package indicates. In a 5 gallon dye batch, I'd use 5 packets of dye. If you plan to do a lot of dyeing, you can get Rit dyes in bulk. We had 5 pound tubs.
If it's not dark enough yet, keep cooking. You can always add more dye to your dye bath, but take what you're dyeing out before you add more dye.
When you rinse the item, it will get lighter. As it drys, it will get lighter still. Keep this in mind as you're watching your item change color.
I've dyed with rit in my washing machine several times. Afterward I just run it once empty with some bleach. Clean and no worries about dying the loads of laundry to follow.
I have used dye in the washing machine several times now with no problems afterwards - there was absolutely no issue with dye being left behind - if you're concerned about it jsut run the machine on a hot cycle with a splash of bleach which will give the internals a good clean anyway!
If you are using a granular dye product (instead of a liquid) you can get splotches (I did the first time I used it
The instructions tell you to add the dye stuff and salt to the machine and bung in the wet fabric - the problem I had was that I was dyeing pale pink towels a purple/mauve colour - and the purple dye is made up of flecks of red and blue so where the wet fabric first touched the dry dye-stuffs it dyed it red and blue instead of the mixture of the two to make purple - to prevent this happening I now add water to the washing machine along with the salt and the dye until I can see that all the powder dye has dissolved and mixed properly - I've never had a problem since.
I used Rit and our washing machine to dye my mother's cream wedding dress chartreuse for my prom. It turned out beautifully and my mom was so pleased to see the dress being re-purposed. Oh, and it was cheap. Really, really cheap. I would highly recommend trying it!
what does all this dyeing do to our water supply?
I use fiber-reactive dye like procion dyes. you can get them in bulk depending on how much you need and you can also dye in the washing machine. The colors bind to the fiber and don't run. mrs yow's link above to dharma trading has great info for picking the right dye for your needs.
This thread is amazing. Thanks so much everyone :)
I much prefer the liquid RIT dyes to the powder I've never had a problem with either but the liquid are much easier to mix a custom color. Although this selection is very nice you'd have to buy so much of it to dye anything large that you might as well just take the time to mix the cheaper dye yourself.
Will either Rit or iDye stain plastic? Our washing machine has a plastic tub -- as opposed to enameled metal -- so I've always been afraid of staining it.
I have also used Rit dyes in the washer, it's very easy. To wash the washer out, I just ran it, empty, through a hot wash cycle with a little bleach.
My main question is if the dye is actually vibrant. That's always the problem with Rit-- it comes out WAY lighter than the bottle/box shows.
Emily
I've used iDye! I like it a lot better than Rit, but the color isn't guaranteed to be 100% even and it would probably be best to buy their color fastener just to be safe--and if you're dying something as big as a duvet cover, consider using two dye packets instead of one, especially if you're going for a darker color. Just beware: I dyed a bunch of tote bags different colors and, despite all the rinsing, when one of them got a little wet the color ran. In general, the colors are definitely more vibrant than Rit, so for that I highly recommend it.
And on another note, I found Dharma Trading to be a great, reliable company.
I find dylon is great, but cleaning the washing machine afterwards ae chore, as it gets into the rubber seal, and eventually flakes of inert dye come out of the rubber front seal. Im doing a 60 degree wash to clean it this should work if not a 95 degree wash cycle with a cup of bleach should finally do it. Dyed a huge amount of stuff (items bought specifically to dye over the past few years) this week, now got 5 more coats to wear, 2 new sweaters, 1 t shirt and revamped 4 pairs of Maharishi Snopants (DYED DARK OLIVE & Navy).
Only had one mistake 1 pair of snopants which I will be removing the dye from this weekend, shame really such a good track record for my first time with Dylon.
Im a UK resident so I use Dylon.
This thread is great, so helpful! I am thinking about buying an Ektorp sofa cover in white from Ikea and attempting to dye it myself, which seems like a daunting task, but this helped reassure me a bit. I have a (silly) question though. I just looked up the weight of the cover online at Ikea's website and it says it's 14lbs. Would it be okay/work to use 5 packets of the iDye in the washing maching method?? Please advise. Thanks!
I am curious if you dyed your Ikea cover yet I am planning to do the same. how did it come out with the Idye and in the washing machine? Thanks!