Tie-dyeing Using Procion Dye

Want vibrant color? Use Procion Dye. It's what the pros use (and those of us that are pro "wannabes"). This tutorial will show you how to achieve professional-quality tie-dye results using fiber reactive dyes.

Shopping list:

• Dharma Fiber Reactive Dye - (Procion Dye)
• Cotton fabric, or clothing
• Soda Ash
• Rubber Bands or String to Tie
• Squirt Bottle

Let's get started!

Step 1: Prepare the soda ash solution

First, you'll want to prepare a mixture of soda ash and water to soak your fabric in. I like to do this before I tie my fabric so the dye bleeds just a little....but you can also soak it after your fabric is tied. Here is what the soda ash looks like:

Basically you add 1 cup of soda ash per gallon of warm water. Make sure to wear gloves though.....this stuff can dry out and redden your hands (I know from experience).

Step 2: Soak your fabric

Soak your fabric until wet and then wring out:

Step 3: Tie your fabric

I like to use string to tie my fabric. I like the effect I end up with as the dye bleeds into the string:

Step 4: Understand dye mixing ratios

Below is what the Procion Dyes look like. Measuring them is SUPER simple because they are coded with asterisks (*). You just mix 8 oz of warm water to the following amount of dye:
Colors with no * need 2 teaspoons of dye.
Colors with one * need 4 teaspoons of dye.
Colors with two * need 8 teaspoons of dye.

Step 5: Measure your dye powder

In this example, I was using Hot Pink (which had no * on the title) so I just added 2 teaspoons of dye......

Step 6: Add dye to squeeze bottle

.....into an 8oz squirt bottle using a little funnel I made from some plastic sheeting.

Step 7: Mix with water

Then I added the 8oz of warm water and shook it to mix:

Step 8: Apply the dye

Apply the dye!

Step 9: Wrap and cure

Wrap up the dyed fabric in plastic sheeting or a plastic bag to keep the dye and fabric wet. I let mine sit overnight for 24 hours.

Step 10: Rinse and wash

The next day I remove the fabric from the bag and while still tied rinse off the excess dye using cold running water. Then I untie, rinse out again and put it through the wash on cold. I try to keep the dyes similar in the first wash to preserve color too (i.e. one load of pinks, one load of blues). They won't fade after that!

Note: Dharma recommends the final wash with HOT water and Dharma Dyers Detergent or something similar so that the garment will never bleed on anything.

Additional Tips and Examples

Two recent custom dress orders I did using Procion:

A birthday dress with a screen printed "3" and a dyed skirt. The customer sent me the bling to applique on the skirt.

A veggie dress made with upcycled knits and tie dye.