Don’t let the name fool you… Acid Dyes do not contain acid or any other harmful chemicals. In fact, it has a neutral pH, like water. The only thing acidic is the white vinegar that you add. Acid Dyes are the dye of choice for silk, wool, nylon, feathers or any protein (animal) fiber. For cotton or any other plant fibers use Procion MX Dyes.

Acid Dyes are extremely brilliant and colorfast. If you can do a load of laundry, you can use these dyes. In addiction to garment dyeing in a washing machine, you can use it to paint, print or airbrush.

One half ounce of Acid Dyes will color about two pounds of fabric. Yardage will vary by weight and width of the fiber or fabric.

Acid Dyes are considered non-toxic when used properly. Common sense and good housekeeping should be used when handling any dye or chemical. Acid Dyes are fully certified and conform to ASTM D4236-86.

We recommend using the washing machine even for small amounts of fabric because it is convenient and results are reproducible. The variables in dyeing are temperature, dye concentration, time and amount of fabric. The washing machine maintains consistent time, temperature and agitation so the amount of dye and fabric are the only things you need be concerned with.

Set the washing machine to gentle cycle, hot wash/cool rinse and fill to the lowest level appropriate for the amount of fabric being dyed. Add dye powder to agitate until dissolved. Some dye colors are more dense than others, so use 1/2 jar for one pound of fabric. 1/4 jar for 1/2 pound of fabric, etc. Add clean fiber and agitate two minutes. Add one cup of vinegar being careful not to pour directly onto fabric. Before wash cycle is complete, turn machine off and examine fabric. Fabric looks much darker and wet than it does dry. To test your results, dye a scarp of material with your main load and dry with a hair dryer. At this point, you may let the machine continue through its cycle or start again, adding more dye if desired to increase the depth of the shade. Wash in cool water and Synthrapol or liquid soap.

Fill a metal pot with just enough hot or warm water for the fabric to swim freely, turn on the heat. Add the dye powder to the pot and stir. Normally, in this procedure one would add 2 to 4% of the dry weight of the fabric in dye powder. For example, if you are dyeing 1 lb (16oz) of fabric, use 1/3 to 2/3 of an ounce of dye. Add the fabric to the dye pot. Raise the temperature to 180'F to boiling (feathers need a minimum temp of 170'). Add 1/4 cup of vinegar. Maintain temperature and stir occasionally for 1/2 hour. Wash in soap and warm water. The final color depends on the time in the dye bath, concentration of the dye and temperature of the die bath.

For professional silk painters who steam set, liquid acid dyes provide the brightest, most intense color in the world. To make your own liquid acid dyes for silk painting, use the following recipe:

Use these directions as guidelines. Acid dyes are quite forgiving and amendable to variations in procedure, the more you will discover.