Name: Stacey

Region: Philadelphia, PA

Message: I am school president at an elementary school and we have a large stock of white 50/50 shirts with our school name on them (adult and kids' sizes).  I wanted to see if I could find someone who would dye the entire lot.  Happy with mixed colors and looks, just bright is the only request.  Do you have someone I could contact?  Thank you so much. Stacey

You will not be able to get really bright colors with shirts that are 50% polyester. Only the 50% of the fiber that is cotton will take the dye. Although it is possible to dye polyester, the process is a lot of trouble and will cost a lot more, so I recommend you stick to just dyeing the cotton. This means that you won't be able to get eye-poppingly bright colors, but you can still get pretty pastel colors that are more interesting than the white you have now.

There are a few commercial dyers who are willing to take on this sort of job. See my page, "Where can I find someone to dye my clothing for me?". For solid colors, the most economical choice would be to mail your boxes of shirts off to True Color Fabric Dyeing, in Oregon, and select one of the colors on their "True Color Palette" (though the color will be half as intense on 50% cotton shirts). The cost will be $13.90 per pound of t-shirts (weighed while dry).

Alternatively, you or someone else at your school could buy large jars of Procion MX dye powder, mail-ordering them from a economical dye supplier such as Dharma Trading Company or PRO Chemical & Dye, which have much better prices than any local crafts store. (See "Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World".) You will also need to buy soda ash or washing soda, plus a large quantity of ordinary non-iodized salt. You will need to use a top-loading washing machine, and to divide the quantity of shirts you have up into groups of the right size for the washing machine, 5 pounds per load for an average sized washer, or up to 8 pounds per load for a large-capacity home washer. (This is the dry weight of the fabric, before dyeing.) See "How can I dye clothing or fabric in the washing machine?".

For multi-color dyeing, you can crumple the shirts, or have the children tie them as for tie-dyeing, then put the shirts in a large plastic bin and pour Procion dye and then soda ash over them, as described on my page on "How to Do Low Water Immersion Dyeing". Again, this should be done with Procion MX dye, not, for example, an all-purpose dye, such as Rit, because Procion dye is far less expensive per garment than Rit dye, and is much easier to use since it is not a hot-water dye like all all-purpose dyes are. The results of dyeing with Procion dye are also far more satisfactory, as the colors are brighter and last for years longer.

Please note that the shirts must be pre-washed before dyeing, preferably in very hot water. There is also a need to wash the shirts several times after dyeing, to remove excess unattached dye.

For truly brilliant dye colors, it's essential to start with 100% cotton shirts, but you can get some nice bright pastels when dyeing shirts that are 50% cotton and 50% polyester.

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