Name:  Richard
Message: Hi Paula,
I did a search for dyeing and came across your website chock full of information. I'm a young screen Printer in every sense of the word. One of the blank shirts i used to print on is the Anvil Chromazone (pigment dyed tees). I don't know if you're familiar with them but they have that faded look, no bright colors. Those anvil ringer tees have been discontinued so I'd like to do my own. Could you say what kind of dye may be used to give a similar effect.

Pigment 'dyeing' is the solid-color dyeing of garments using fabric paints, or pigments that are adhered to the fiber using a glue-like binder. See "Fabric Paints: a different way to color fibers", on this page:
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/fabricpaints.shtml 

Fabric paints do not permeate fibers, as dyes generally do, so even a small amount of wear looks like a lot. The result is an appearance of instant age.

On their Product Instructions page, the excellent dye supply company PRO Chemical & Dye gives a link to their page on "Pigment Dyeing using PROfab Color Concentrates"; this can be used to pigment dye 5 pounds of garments at a time in the washing machine. See
http://www.prochemical.com/directions/PigmentDyeing.htm.

You can also get dull colors with real dye, instead of fabric paint, by mixing any color you like of dye with a tan or brown dye color mixture, or mixing any two 'opposite' dye colors, such as red and green, or blue and orange. Of course this will not give you the rapid fading of pigment dyed garments, though.

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