Tie Dye Instructions

We teach the modern "direct application" method of tie dye. In direct

application tie dye, you make small, concentrated solutions of dye and
squirt the dye onto the fabric. You do not make large buckets full of dye,
and you do not dip the fabric into the dye. When using dyes and
chemicals it is important to protect your work area, and always wear
gloves and protective clothing. Please read our common sense safety and
dye handling instructions before starting your project.
Equipment you will need:
Dyeing Surface: Disposable work surfaces such as cardboard or plastic
tarp work well.
Work space protection: Plastic sheets covered with newspaper provide
good workspace protection.
Personal protection: rubber gloves to protect skin from fixer irritation and
dye staining; eye protection to protect eyes from splashing fixer water and
Synthrapol SP detergent; dust masks to prevent breathing powders. Paint
shirts to protect clothing.

Bucket to mix fixer solution

Pitcher or jar to mix chemical water
Cups, bottles or other containers in which to mix dye colors.

Ties: Big, thin rubber bands, twine, sinew, zip ties, etc. all work well to tie
fabric.
Pipettes, squeeze bottles, or other tools to apply dye.
Measuring cups and measuring teaspoons.
Step 1:Wash fabric
Wash fabric to remove any sizing or oils on the fabric that may interfere
with the dye.
We include this instruction because it is a long standing recommendation
in fabric dyeing. Unless you are concerned about the fitness of the fabric
or tie dye, you dont need to bother washing the fabric first.
Step 2: Prepare fixer water
In a plastic bucket, or other suitable container, mix cup dye fixer per
gallon of warm water. Expand recipe as needed.

Dye fixer is a chemical called sodium carbonate or soda ash. Wear gloves
to keep it from irritating your skin and avoid splashing it into eyes to avoid
irritation and burning; treat it as you would a strong soap.

Step 3: Soak Fabric

Soak the material to be dyed in the dye fixer solution. Let the fabric soak
in the solution for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the fabric is completely
saturated. You can reuse the fixer water and treat several batches of
fabric in the same mixture.
Step 4: Fold, Twist or Tie
Wring out excess fixer water back into the fixer water bucket. Place the
fixed fabric on dyeing surface and fold, twist or tie it into the pattern
you want to dye. You can find instructions on common designs later in this
guide. The dye spreads on the fabric in different ways depending on how
wet the fabric is with fixer water. Wetter fabric causes the dye to flow out
into fabric in more feathery or marbled patterns. Dryer fabric yields
cleaner lines and less spreading. Different dye patterns look better with
different fixer wetness levels in the fabric. For example, marble patterns
look better when starting with a wetter shirt, and striped patterns look
better on dryer shirts.
Step 5: Prepare Chemical Water for dyes
Chemical water consists of Urea, Ludigol and optionally Water Softener.
The recipe for Chemical Water is cup urea, 2 teaspoons ludigol, and an
optional 1 teaspoon water softener for every 1 quart of warm water. This
will be the Chemical water you will mix your dye powders with to make
your dye colors. If you do not have the chemicals for chemical water, you
will mix the dye powders with plain warm water. Expand recipe as needed.
Step 6: Mix dye colors
In this stage, you are not making big buckets full of dye. You will be mixing
dye powder with chemical water or plain warm water in cups, bottles,
or other containers in small, concentrated batches. You can control the
shade of the colors you mix by using different quantities of dye in your
concentrated dye solutions. For bright, strong colors, mix 4 to 6 teaspoons
dye powder per cup of chemical water. For medium shades, mix 2 to 4
teaspoons dye powder per cup of chemical water. For light or pastel
shades, mix to 2 teaspoons of dye powder per cup of chemical water.
Stir dye well to dissolve dye powder completely.

Step 7: Apply the dye

With fabric on dyeing surface, apply dye to fabric by squirting dye onto
the fabric with a pipette, squeeze bottle, or other dye application tool.
Most dyeing patterns call for saturating the fabric with dye. The mistake
most beginners make is to not squirt enough dye into the fabric. Apply all
the different colors at this time. Flip the fabric over and apply dye to both
sides of the fabric, saturating each side of the fabric.

Step 8: After you dye

After you are done dyeing the fabric, leave it alone. Do not untie it. Do not
hang it up to dry. Leave it tied up, and leave it alone. Let the fabric sit for
2-24 hours. The longer you can let the fabric sit, the easier it will be to
wash out loose dye from the fabric. The length of time you let the fabric
sit is not overly critical. If you are in a hurry, let the fabric sit for as long as
your deadline will allow.
Step 9: Wash loose dye from fabric
Wear gloves while handling the fabric, as the dye will still stain your hands
until after it has been washed. Place fabric under cold running water and
rinse until no more dye comes out of the fabric. We always say rinse until
youre sick of rinsing. A lot of loose dye will wash out off the fabric. This is
normal. The wash water may turn black or brown, and the fabric may look
discolored with dirty dye. This is normal as well. After rinsing, move to
washing machine. You may wash several pieces at once, up to a full load,
even if washing different colors. From this point, you can continue with or
without Synthrapol SP Detergent. The best and easiest way to wash out
loose dye is with Synthrapol SP Detergent. Synthrapol SP is a very
concentrated and sudsy detergent - a little goes a long way. If you have a
front loading washing machine, do not use Synthrapol SP as it is too sudsy.
Front loading or low water washing machines tend to not wash out loose
dye well, because they do not have enough water to dilute the dye and
carry it away.
With Synthrapol SP: Put your dyed shirts directly into a top loading
washing machine, adding Synthrapol SP detergent. On the first washing,
use cold water. Use 1-2 tbsp of Synthrapol SP if you have washed most of
the loose dye out by hand, and up to cup of Synthrapol SP for heavily
dyed loads. The more dye you are attempting to wash out, the more
Synthrapol SP you will use. Use warm or hot water on subsequent
washings. Add smaller amounts of Synthrapol SP Detergent on each

additional washing. Wash fabric as many times as you need youve

washed out all the loose dye and the water in the rinse cycle is clear.
Without Synthrapol SP: If you do not have Synthrapol SP Detergent, use
regular laundry soap in amounts for a normal wash load. Wash fabric as
many times as you need to until you've washed out all the loose dye and
the water in the rinse cycle is clear.
You are finished!
Dry as you would any normal fabric and enjoy!

Methods
1. Make stripes. Lay your shirt out flat on a table. Roll it from the
bottom hem to the neck, so that you end up with a long tube of
shirt. Use string or rubber bands to tie loops around the shirt roll.
To create only a few stripes, space out the ties so that there are three or
less. For many stripes, use a dozen or more ties around the shirt.
Rolling the shirt upwards will create vertical stripes.
If you are interested in creating horizontal strips, roll the shirt from left to
right (or vice versa), and tie the strings along this direction.
2. Create a spiral. This is the most basic of the tie dye techniques
and one of the most popular. To create a spiral on your shirt, first lay
it flat on a countertop or table. Then, put your thumb and index
finger in the center of the shirt. Begin moving them in a circular
motion, spiraling the shirt around the center point.
When you have spiraled the entire shirt, use large rubber bands or strings
to tie the shirt. You will need to create at least six sections, so use at least
three rubber bands or strings over the shirt. It should be roughly round
shaped, and have pie slices with the addition of the ties.
For a more intricate pattern, use more ties. Make sure that there is one
center point at which they all cross though.
You can create multiple small spirals by spiraling your shirt in multiple
smaller sections using the method from above.

If your shirt begins to form ridges, flatten them out. Your shirt should be
spiraled, but it should stay flat on the table.
3. Create polka dots. Take your shirt, and pinch small sections of
fabric between your fingers. Tie a piece of string around the end of
the fabric. To create small dots, only leave one-half to one inch of
fabric outside of the tie. Larger dots can be made by tying the fabric
further down so that a larger section of fabric sticks out.
You can create target-shaped dots by adding more pieces of string on the
ends of the pieces that have been tied. Adding more ties will create more
rings.
Try using string that has been dipped in dye before tying it to add an extra
ring of color to the outside of your dots.

4. Make rosettes. These are small floral shaped dots spread out
around your shirt. To do this, pinch a small section of your shirt
together. Transfer the pinched section to one hand, and then pinch
another nearby section. Again, transfer this section to your opposite
hand. When you have a group of pinched sections, lace them with a
string or rubber band.
Use multiple strings to create more of a striped/spiraled pattern in your
rosette. You can make as many rosettes on your shirt as you have room
for.
Use more pinches of fabric to create a more detailed rosette. Using only a
few will leave a very basic, simple rosette print.
5. Give your shirt a crumpled look. The easiest way to tie dye is to
take your shirt and crumple it up however you would like. It should
be very messy and rumpled, not neatly rolled or folded. Then, take
as many strings and rubber bands as you would like, and wrap them
all over the shirt. You can create a pattern with them, but for the
most crumpled look dont follow any direction.
Create pleats. Start at the bottom of your shirt, and fold it upwards in the
accordion style. To do that, you should fold a section towards the front,
and then take that section and fold it towards the back. Repeat this
pattern until the entire shirt has been folded.
Tie the shirt in as many times as you would like. This style is similar to
creating stripes, so the number of ties you add will determine the number
of stripes.

Folding the shirt upwards will create vertical pleats. To create horizontal
pleats, follow the same directions and fold the shirt from left to right (or
vice versa).[1]
6. Create a lightning bolt. This is the most complicated design and
requires a lot of folding. It is, however one of the most attractive.
Begin by folding the shirt upwards at about chest level and then
folding the section back down, creating an N-shape if viewed from
the side. Do this again, but lower down. Fold a section about 2
inches (5.1 cm) from the top of the first fold upwards, and then fold
it back down. Repeat this 3-5 times, until your shirt has several
layered folds.
The layered folds will have an appearance similar to that of an oldfashioned washboard.
Turn the shirt diagonally and visually mark a line down the center.
Accordion fold from one side to the center, and then turn the shirt and
accordion fold from the other side to the center.
Tie the shirt in bunches once you have finished all the folding. For a more
detailed lightning-bolt shape, use many strings or rubber bands. If you
prefer a more basic look, use only 3-4 ties.

Group 3
Members:
Cherry Ann Gestole
Bryan Mark Gueta
Amy Gitana
Jocyn Estadilla
Mark Dedase
Jinky Asne
Marjorie Gubat
Angelica Espela
Symor Peralta
Aiza Abaroa

Mary Dianne Pante