Will Retayne set a dye originally intended to be washed out?

Name: Cynthia

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Country or region: Nebraska, USA

Message: Will Retayne set a dye originally intended to be washed out? I bought an old feed sack (off-white with colored logo) with printed instructions for washing out the logo. The instructions are to wash in water greater than 150 degrees. I want to retain the logo and use fabric in a quilt that will be rarely washed. How can I prepare and care for this fabric to preserve the print?

I can't recommend using Retayne to try to make any water-soluble dye permanent. Retayne, and other brands of cationic dye fixatives, are unlikely to be able to set this type of dye, even sufficiently for an item that is to be washed only rarely. The biggest risk is that the logo may run while you are trying to apply the Retayne.

Retayne is supposed to be applied in hot water. I am afraid that, even if you use water that is 130°F or 140°F to apply the Retayne, at least some of the ink in the logo may dissolve in it. Although the instructions for your water-soluble dye say to use 150°F water to wash it out, it is very likely that some of it will run even in cooler water.

Here are several better ways to make the logo permanent:

1. Never, ever wash the feed sack. Frame it behind glass.

2. Using fabric paint selected to match the logo's color(s), carefully paint over the design. Allow the fabric paint to dry and then, if the manufacturer recommends doing so, use a hot iron to heat-set it. (Some fabric paints do not require heat-setting, but it is always best to wait at least a week after they dry before washing.)

3. Scan the logo on your computer's scanner, or have a photocopy shop do this. Print it, or have the photocopy shop print it, onto iron-on transfer paper, or have the photocopy shop transfer it to fabric for you.

4. Using a clear, colorless fabric paint, generously paint over the logo on both the front and the back sides of the fabric, using the clear acrylic paint to seal in the water-soluble ink. Note that this, like colored fabric paint, will change the feeling of the fabric, at least a little, even if it does not change the color. PROfab Transparent Base Extender (which is sold online by PRO Chemical & Dye) would be a good choice. Other products that should work well for this include Jacquard Products' Neopaque Extender, or an acrylic textile medium such as Jo Sonja's Textile Medium or Delta Ceramcoat Clear Textile Medium. Acrylic textile mediums are sold for the purpose of mixing with artists' acrylic paints for making your own fabric paint. The different brands of products have different textures when wet; please experiment on scrap material before using any of them on your project.

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Posted: Tuesday - August 02, 2011 at 01:31 PM

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Will Retayne set a dye originally intended to be washed out?

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