Tie-Dye with Fabric Paint
General Information
Some folks prefer to use diluted fabric paint such as Dye-Na-Flow, Jacquard Airbrush Ink, or even diluted Versatex Printing Ink, rather than a dye. Experiment with thinning your paints with water or mixing with each other — different consistencies will give different effects. Experiment with applying the paint pigment to wet, damp or dry fabric as each will produce very different results.
Dyes penetrate and become part of the fabric and leave no feel on the fabric surface; even the best paint will have some feel to it. A very thin paint, like Jacquard Airbrush Ink or Dye-Na-Flow, will act and travel on the fabric more like a dye and leave very little feel. You can even thin them some and still get great color. Advantages to using paints for tie-dye are the non-toxicity, no messy powders, no chemicals, and the fact that paints can be permanent on most fabrics, even some synthetics. Paints can be safer to use with really young children. The advantages of using dyes over paints are the more traditional tie-dye look, the softness, and the fact that Fiber Reactive Dyes are more economical.
Comments and Instructions
It's a big secret, but some of the most interesting tie-dye you'll ever see is done with thin fabric paint. You can get tie-dye effects that are crisper, cleaner and more controlled than with dyes, and it's faster and easier.
Thinner paints like Jacquard Airbrush Ink or Dye-Na-Flow (any that have tie-dye listed among their uses) are almost imperceptible on the fabric — but it is there. Being a paint, they are also thicker than dye and won't migrate the same way as dye. As a result, shirts tie-dyed with fabric paint have less mixing of colors but more defined, harder edges. Also, there is absolutely no run off and there is no possibility of staining un-dyed or light areas (sometimes a problem with dyes). Paint colors are more forceful (less subtle) than dye colors, which in some circumstances may be a negative, but is often just what is needed.
Method A
Tie the fabric or shirt in the desired way. Roll it in a shallow pan of paint (dilute to taste). While still folded, hang to dry (a bent wire under one of the rubber bands works well). After the exterior is dry (the inside will remain wet), untie and repeat the process with one or more additional colors, then hang untied to dry. Iron, bake or use a commercial dryer to set according to the manufacturer's directions. Another alternative is using our No Heat Fixative mixed with the paint right before using, in which case the paint will become permanent in a few days.
Method B
Paint thin or thinned fabric paint onto the tied shirt with a brush or foam brush — you can even spray it on! Use as many colors as you want, painting different areas different colors. Allow to dry with a hair dryer, or hang dry. Untie and iron, heat press, flash dry, or tumble in a hot dryer. Optionally, you can re-tie and do it again.
