Fiber Reactive Dye - Pure Colors vs Mixed

We often get asked, what do we mean when we say something is a "Pure Color" or a "Primary Color." Is there a difference?

Pure Colors- These are colors that only have one specific dye molecule, they do not have ANYTHING else mixed in with them. If you use less dye they will get predictably paler, if you use more they will get more and more saturated. However, not all Pure Colors are Primary Colors, for example Fiber Reactive Dye #117 Grape is a pure purple, but purple is a secondary color on the color wheel, so it is not considered a Primary Color.

Primary Colors- These are colors that are the basic ones for mixing. Traditionally, primary colors are red, yellow and blue. Mainly this holds true for mixing pigments, which are what are used to color paints, not dyes, and they are fairly opaque. For dyes, we use the same primary colors that are used for mixing light sources (like theater lights or computer monitors), since dyes are transparent just like light: These are Magenta, Yellow and Cyan. Primary colors are also Pure Colors so that color recipes can be predictably repeated if desired. 

How do you know if a color is a Pure Color or a Primary?

There are only 3 colors that are true primaries. Those equivalents to Magenta, Yellow and Cyan in the Fiber Reactive Dyes are #13-Fuchsia, #1-Lemon Yellow and #25-Turquoise.

In the screenshot below, you can see that #1 Lemon Yellow is also called Yellow 86 or MX-8G. That is how you tell it is a pure color. It is also a primary color. Two other yellows, #3 Golden Yellow and #4 Deep Yellow are also pure colors, but we don't consider them the primary mixing yellows because they are too orange. Mixing the three primary colors will give you the absolute brightest secondary colors (Orange, Green and Purple) Using other PURE colors to mix with will give you darker or more muted mixes. For example if you mixed an orangish pure yellow with a darker pure blue than Turquoise, you will get a darker and more muted green instead of a bright green. So all of the other pure colors are great for mixing too, and we use all of them! 

ALL other colors that do not have a Color Index Code/MX Numbers after their names are mixes of two or more of the many pure colors.

How is this useful?

If you are looking to start mixing your own colors and shades it helps to know what dyes are primary and pure colors so you can keep track and make your own color recipes or follow ones from a book. Mixing with pure colors is more consistent than mixing with mixed dye colors, due to the occasional and normal slight variation of dye lots of the pure colors, which can come in slightly stronger or weaker, which will affect mixes.

Ice Dyeing looks most interesting when you use mixed colors as the melting ice causes the pure colors to split out as they are pulled through the fabric. This is due to the size of the dye molecules varying, as pure colors with smaller molecules travel through the fabric at a faster rate than colors with larger molecules. Also some colors "strike" or become permanent in place faster in the presence of the soda ash than others, causing the colors that strike more slowly to travel more. 3 to 4 color mixes like blacks, grays and browns can do some pretty dramatic splitting. The newer "ice dye colors" that we have developed, also our new Dalula Ice Dye series have some really dramatic splits when ice dyeing! Using pure colors for ice dyeing is much less dramatic so dyers may want to avoid them or use them sparingly as accents.

Tie-Dyers who are using mixed colors will occasionally see bleeding of one or more component colors along the edges of where they applied the dye. This can cause unintended mixing of colors that are next to each other that might make a brown, or just might not look how you wanted. If you need to avoid this, you might want to add a little Super Clear or a tiny amount of Sodium Alginate to colors that are mixes if you want to create sharp lines between colors that you are applying and not have the component pure colors bleed at the edges or into other colors. (Those additives can also make your black lines sharper when you are doing things like spider designs, etc.)

So now you know! To learn more about color mixing and dye chemistry check out this article. One of the most fun things about ice dyeing and tie-dying is the experimenting with colors, color mixing, and all of the many techniques you can try - ENJOY! 

Pure (non-mixed) Fiber Reactive Dye Colors - #1 Lemon Yellow, #3 Golden Yellow, #6 Deep Orange, #12 Light Red, #13 Fuchsia Red, #22 Cobalt Blue, #23 Cerulean Blue, #25 Turquoise, #26 Sky Blue, #117 Grape, #175 Neutral Gray (hot water dye), #186 Nebula Navy, #188 Bluebird, #189 Magenta Galactica, #190 Atomic Fireball, #191 Blue Abyss, #192 Houdini Blue, #194 Dye-namite Red, #195 Stratosphere, and our 3 NEWEST pure colors #196 Sunny Side Up, #197 Blue Velvet and #198 Purpureus!