Name: Skully

Country: USA

Message: I looked through all your questions but didn't find exactly what I wanted to know.  I have charcoal grey elastic waist pants from Walmart with the White Stag label.  They say cotton twill blend and are 96% cotton and 4% spandex. I can't find them anymore. Can I dye a dark denim blue that looks like jeans with that little bit of white in them but are the exact same pants as the charcoal grey just a different color? I want to get them to a charcoal grey not black. I don't care if the dyed pants do not have the white fibers in them. I just want charcoal grey pants. Walmart carries alot of this style in the blue denim like color so if I can dye them to charcoal black I will have the same pants that I can't find anymore. Thank you for any advice you can give me.

Yes, you can do this. The blue yarns will dye a different color than the white ones, darker and (of course) bluer, but, if you use a dark charcoal gray, the difference should be slight.

I recommend that you do NOT use all-purpose dye, such as Rit or Tintex. These dyes are hot water dyes, but hot water is bad for spandex and will shorten its life, if it doesn't ruin it immediately. Other dyes last much longer, anyway. The best choice would be fiber reactive dye. You can mail-order good Procion MX fiber reactive dye that can be applied in cool water, and set with soda ash; it will stay dark years longer than any all-purpose dye.

If you are going to dye a single pair of pants, you can use the Procion MX dye in the washing machine or in a five-gallon plastic bucket. The washing machine is easier, since the bucket method requires a lot of stirring in order to get a smooth solid color. If you will be dyeing more than one pair of pants, I strongly recommend the washing machine method. The technique is otherwise the same. See "How can I dye clothing or fabric in the washing machine?".

I have to warn you about fabric treatments. If the pants have a permanent press finish, anti-pill finish, or, especially, a stain-resistant finish, you won't be able to get as good results in dyeing. Don't even try to dye stain-resistant clothing, because it will also resist the dye, and the results will be splotchy and pale. The other finishes are less drastic in their effects, but will result in a paler color. A pair of pants that is made of 96% cotton and does not have any of these surface finishes will dye very well if you follow the steps in the recipe closely.

It is unlikely that you will be able to buy good dyes in your local store, except as part of a tie-dyeing kit (which does not contain the color you need). Don't be tempted, by their availability, to use all-purpose dyes. You can mail-order Procion MX dyes from a number of different suppliers; see the lists on my page, "Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World". Check the recipe first to see how much dye you'll need. It's based on how much the fabric weighs. For a dark color such as charcoal gray, you should use more dye powder than you would use for another color, but not as much as for black. If you buy your dye and decide on how you're going to do the dyeing first, I can help you decide how much dye to use. You'll also need either soda ash or washing soda, and a large quantity of ordinary table salt.

If they turn out to dye well, you can also consider dyeing another pair of the blue pants to another dark color that contains blue, choosing among dark green, navy, or purple.

(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)