It's about that time for back-to-school shopping. This year, consider getting some plain white t-shirts and a tie dye pack! Not only will the kids get a few new tops for school this year, but you'll also get a super fun family date night!
If you've never tie dyed something- here's your chance! Set up a table outside and pick up a few supplies from the store and you'll be ready to rumble with this week's family night tie dye party!
Materials you'll need:
White, 100% cotton T-shirt (or other cotton item)
A tie-dye ink kit (which includes tie-dye instructions) or several colors of Rit dye
These items, if not using a tie-dye kit:
Rit dye
Squirt bottles
Rubber bands
Rubber gloves
Gallon-sized zip plastic bags
Water (to add to the ink bottles)
A spray bottle of water (helpful to dampen shirts before applying ink)
Paper towels or rags for spills
Project preparation
1. Get set up If you have purchased a new T-shirt, machine wash and dry it first, but don't use fabric softener or a dryer sheet, to avoid leaving any kind of residue on the fabric that might repel the ink. Cover your work space with a plastic tablecloth (or set this up outside).
2. Prepare your ink If you bought a kit, set up the inks in the bottles according to the tie-dye instructions. If you bought powered or liquid dye, prepare it according to package instructions and put the ink into the squirt bottles.
3. Prepare your shirt Spray the shirt with water to dampen it, then choose your pattern from the list of four below or come up with your own. Twist the shirt and wrap with rubber bands to secure it in your desired pattern.
4. Ink the shirt Squeeze ink onto the sections per kit instructions or per the pattern you've decided to follow — or freestyle it! Once you've finished dying, place each shirt in a sealed plastic bag for 24 hours to allow the ink to set and the colors to become vibrant.
5. Rinse After 24 hours, put on a pair of rubber gloves, remove the shirt from the bag and rinse it in cold water (without removing the rubber bands) until the water runs clear of the dye. Then remove the rubber bands, rinse again, then machine wash and dry the shirts on the hottest setting allowed on the shirt tag. Do not combine the shirts with any other clothing for that initial wash and dry in case any extra dye bleeds. When it's dry, you are ready to wear and enjoy your classic shirt!
Here's a video that might help. To be honest, most of this is helpful, but there are definitely some parts that aren't... they're just funny to watch!
Here are a few helpful tips if you're not already a tie dye master:
Use 100% natural fiber fabric only (cotton, silk, rayon, wool)
Do not add water to your bottles of dye until you are ready to use it.
Get your fabric completely wet, then completely wrung out, before applying dye. This makes the dye soak into the fabric immediately, which lessens the amount of dye you need per project (more economical!).
Keep dyed fabric covered with plastic (bags work great, but you could also wrap in plastic wrap) to prevent it from drying out; fabric that dries before the dye is finished setting can result in weaker color concentration and less intensity.
Use a shoe box, aluminum pan or another container to tie-dye in. This keeps excess dye in the box and makes it even easier to clean up.
Wear the gloves! Always wear the gloves, even when preparing the dye bottles.
After putting gloves on, wrap a rubber band on wrist to keep the gloves on. They'll easily slip off the hands of little ones otherwise.
Have fun!!