Message: my blck shirt has been looking a bit faded and i was wondering if i could dye to make it darker and if this would have any affect on the decal on the front. thank you very much.

What is the fiber content of your shirt? In dyeing, everything depends on the fiber you are trying to dye.

Message: Hello, I have some yellow polyester shirts that I would like to dye green or brown. How do you dye polyester? These shirts are 100% polyester. Thanks.

There's a page on my web site that addresses your question. See:
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dispersedye.shtml

Message: i am trying to tie dye red, black, navy and brown bikinis to a different fun color. is that possible to do? ho can we tie dye color fabric?

Dyes can make fabrics darker, never lighter. You cannot dye black, navy, or brown into any fun (i.e., bright) color.

You can paint them with metallic fabric paint, such as Lumiere, or opaque fabric paint, such as Neopaque. One source of such fabric paints is http://www.dharmatrading.com . This is the only way to make the bikinis more fun in color. Most other fabric paints are transparent and will work only on lighter fabric colors.

What dyes can be used depends entirely on the fiber. Different fibers require different types of dye. Polyester and acetate are no fun to dye. Cotton and nylon can be dyed with different dyes.

It is best to start with white or light-colored fabric, if you wish to tie-dye.

Message: hello! I have a peach colored gown that I would like to dye black so that I can wear it more. I do not want to do this myself because I don't want to ruin the dress. Please advise. I live in Saratoga Springs, New York. Thanks!! bv

This is not a service that is normally available. Sorry. Almost nobody dyes customer's garments commercially anymore, only as art.

See Dyeing Polyester with Disperse Dyes .

There are a few people who will custom dye for you, if you pay them adequately for both time and materials, and if you take the risk if your garment proves undyeable and falls apart; see my list of dyers at Custom Dyers. Do NOT list your requirements there, as that list is intended for the dyers themselves to post on. Instead, look there for a dyer to contract.

Name: lynne (rebelwoman1957)
Message: i have a white wedding dress that was for a wedding of a friends. we were going to have it dyed to royal blue but cannot find anyone in delaware who dyes. no cleaners or wedding stores.we paid a pretty penny for this dress and while my husband loves this dress i see no occasion for wearing white. could i get help

1, you can't dye it if it isn't washable

2, dyeing polyester is no fun and certainly not a job for the novice (unlike dyeing cotton)

3, even if the fabric is a dyeable nylon or cotton or silk, the thread is almost certainly polyester and will stay a glaring white - which may look pretty silly with royal blue, depending on the dress

Also see Dyeing Polyester with Disperse Dyes.

Message: You said it is a big mistake to dye a dress if you are beginner and that if it is not washable it will most likely be ruined but what if the dress is washable is it still dangerous to try to dye it and if it is not, can i find this type of dye in stores? thanks

If it is washable, you can dye it. Sometimes some parts dye lighter or darker than others, but it's a risk I often find to be worth taking, especially for cotton or washable rayon.

You must buy the right type of dye for the fiber. If it is polyester, the dye required is disperse dye, rather nasty to use and difficult for beginners. If it is cotton or linen or hemp, it can be dyed with good fiber reactive dyes. If it is wool or nylon, use acid dyes.

You will save a lot of money if you do not try to buy the dye in stores, unless you happen to live near one of the retailers listed at http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dyesources.shtml . Most dyers prefer not to use "all purpose" dye, such as Rit, unless you are dyeing wool or nylon, as its results on cotton are not very bright or washfast. Rainbow Rock, Dylon Cold Water, and Jacquard are good fiber reactive dyes, but MUCH more expensive than the mail-order equivalent. I recommend the PRO MX dye at http://www.prochemical.com/ . It works out to be less than one-sixth the cost of all-purpose dye, per garment, in spite of being of much higher quality.

To dye a dress in a solid color, follow the instructions at http://www.prochemical.com/directions/MX_WashingMachine.htm . For more exciting results, try http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/lowwaterimmersion.shtml or http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/howtotiedye.shtml .

A good source of dresses to dye is http://www.dharmatrading.com .

Message: what was the point of tie-die in the sixties? what does it symbolize to the hippies? even though i know that it wasn't started in the sixties what did the tie- dye mean to the hippies and why did they use it and why does it know symbolize the hippies? please reply asap because i am working on a very big project that is due really soon!!

Sorry, I'm not an authority about hippies, and can't help you.

Dye is transparent, so the original color will always affect the resulting color. If you use a perfectly balanced grey dye, there will be a very slight amount of purple in the results, from the original pale lilac. However, since the original is pale, its contribution may be so small as to be difficult to detect. You may need to use a bit of purple dye, in addition to grey.

Note that you can dye the pants only if they are washable. In addition, the stitching is probably done with polyester thread, which cannot be dyed. It will remain the original color. In some cases, the contrasting stitching looks good, but in others it looks bizarre.

Silk can be dyed with any of the various types of acid dye, such as One Shot Dyes, Washfast Acid dyes, and Kiton Acid dyes, or with fiber reactive dye such as Procion MX or Sabracron F dye. See the acid dyes and the instructions at http://www.prochemical.com/directions.htm , to decide which dye you wish to use. The soda ash recipe that is easiest to use with silk, because no heating is required, may soften some weaves of silk and make it less shiny. Acid dyes require heating, but are best if retaining the shine is very important to you. It's a matter of taste. The color chips for the fiber reactive dyes are based on cotton, however, and the colors of the mixed shades, such as grey, may turn out to be quite different on silk. Acid dye on silk is more predictable, as far as getting the color you plan on getting.

(Do not use acid dye on cotton. For cotton, it is important to use fiber reactive dye.)

Message: I was wondering if you knew the steps to dye lacrosse heads. Thank You!


Are they made of nylon? Acid dye, such as that found in all-purpose dyes (e.g., Rit or Tintex brand dyes), will dye nylon. All-purpose dye tends to perform poorly on cotton, but it works pretty well on nylon. However, the colors in all-purpose dyes are often not quite as represented on the package. Rit dye that is supposed to dye black will instead produce a dark purple on lacrosse heads! Rit is easy to find, but it is not as good as other acid dyes.

For better results, avoid the use of all-purpose dyes, and instead use pure acid dyes. Don't be alarmed by the name; these dyes do not contain acid. Acid dyes are the best kind of dye to use on nylon, whether it's nylon fabric or hard nylon lacrosse heads.

The very best and blackest acid dye is in the Lanaset range of dyes, Lanaset Jet Black B. All of the dyes in the Lanaset range are very rich in color, and more resistant to water after proper application than any other acid dye. They are rather expensive, though. ProChem's WashFast Acid Dye in Jet Black is half the price and contains one of the two dyes that are mixed in the Lanaset black.

Jacquard is a good brand of acid dye which can be purchased from art supply stores such as MisterArt; a wide range of color choices is available.

For best results, you should heat the nylon in the dye bath (dye mixed with water and vinegar) for an extended period of time. You cannot use acid dyes at room temperature, as heat is needed to encourage the formation of a bond between the nylon and the dye. See E-Lacrosse Stick Tech Workshop for descriptions of techniques.

By the way, it is considered inadvisable to reuse a cooking pot for food after it has been used for dyeing. The only dye that should be used in pots used for cooking is food coloring, which is less wash-resistant than other dyes. Rit dye is not suitable for use in containers which will later be reused for food. You should get a large enamel or stainless steel pot to use for dyeing.

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

I'm making a bed canopy for my daughter Jaime's room. She wants her room done in an underwater theme. I want to make a blue canopy out of netting and velcro some small sea creature stuffies on it. I saw a canopy that would be perfect at a store except it was white and I wondered if that kind of nylon, tight netting material can be dyed. I would love to know your thoughts if you can possibly take the time to reply. Thank you for your reply and your wonderful web site!

Nylon is usually pretty easy to dye. Although I do not recommend "all purpose" dye, such as Rit brand dye, for use on cotton, it works quite well on nylon. The process requires heating the nylon with the dye in a pot of very hot water, with a bit of vinegar, and often it is best to use longer times than the package suggests, unless you want pale pastels.

The biggest problem, as I see it, is finding a pot large enough to simmer the nylon in. If this is a large canopy, you might try the washing machine instructions, even though the water won't be quite hot enough. I doubt that you will be washing the canopy much, after all, and washing is what fades this sort of dye.

Beware of anything that is labeled "dry clean only", though. If it can't be washed, it can't be dyed.

Message: Hi, please forgive the question but I have no idea about any of this so I wanted to ask someone who would obviously know. I think I found the answer on your site but want to make sure. What kind of dye would one use on women's slips? (I think they are nylon or polyester)? This is something I would really like to start doing and could use all the help I can get....if you could give me any advice or direct me to the places to find the answers I would be most grateful. Thank you!

It matters a great deal whether you buy nylon slips or polyester slips. Nylon is not very difficult to dye, using acid dye, but polyester is a lot more trouble. You have to buy disperse dye to dye polyester, and boil the slips in it for an hour - will they even survive this treatment? Nylon also requires hot water, but not nearly as hot. You can soak it in dye water that is hot enough to scald, but not nearly boiling.

The fiber content of the lace and other trim is rarely specified, but is often nylon. It would be good to have the trim be the same material as the fabric, so that they dye together in the same type of dye.

Be sure to buy only a single one of each slip and test dye it, buying more only if the first one turns out well.

Message: respected sir, i need to make a seminar report on tie and dye techniqes, please help me out . i am doing eng in textiles. i am expecting ur mail. please do oblige.

What exactly, are you asking me to do? Write your seminar report for you? I hope not! Do you have any more specific questions?

You may find the large amount of information on my web site at http://www.pburch.net/dyeing.shtml to be helpful. I do not have additional information to offer by mail, except in response to specific questions.

Desperately hoping for your help as it is my cousins wedding next week and the quilt is to be her present,it would not be possible to unpick the quilt in time for the wedding and as i want to be able to give her a quilt that wont run the first time she washes it and as such ruining it,your help would be greatly appreciated.

The best thing to do would probably be to wash, wash, wash in cold water with lots of Synthrapol or Orvus detergent, and then use Retayne.

Rit Color Remover tends to work well on fabric that has had dye run onto it. It might leave you with a pink and white quilt. Would your design still work, if that happened?

Here's my page on the closest subject:
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/settingdye.shtml

Here's another quilting page with similar advice:
http://www.quiltbus.com/retayne.htm

Ignore anyone who tells you to use salt or vinegar, as it doesn't help, and can make things worse.

Message: Hello, I want to dye 2 Bra's black. I can not find these Victoria secret bras anymore. I would like to know the product that should be used. There is no padding in the white bras. There is an underwire though. Any advice on how to do this? Please HELP!!

The question is, what is the fiber content of the bras? This can be difficult to determine, as it is common for manufacturers to omit any mention of the materials in the trim, lace, elastic, etc., which can make up the majority of this type of garment.

You can try to dye the bras. Maybe you will get all black results, but it is equally possible that other parts will only turn grey, or will even stay white. This might be more satisfactory with another color, such as purple. Lighter areas would be more acceptable in a color other than black.

I do not recommend the use of all-purpose dye, such as Rit brand dye, for dyeing cotton clothing, but it is probably the best bet for these bras, since it will dye both nylon and cotton. It works well on nylon. Lace is frequently made of nylon. It will do nothing to any parts of the bras that may be made of polyester or acetate, though.

To use black all purpose dye, you would use three or four times the usual recommended amount of dye, as otherwise you will just get a light black color, which is grey. The dye works best at the temperature of a simmer, 190 degrees F., kept in the simmering dyebath for an hour or even longer before washing out, but lower temperatures may be less damaging to the bras.

Results cannot be predicted. I would like to know whether or not the results are satisfactory, if you try this.

Message: Hi, I'm a professional weaver, not a dyer but I need to dye some fine cashmere as I can only obtain it in natural. I'm vat dyeing finished scarves and shawls using the Country Classic One-shot. My problem is that I'm getting too much color. I want to give them just a tinge of pastel color. With a one-shot acid dye, if I reduce the amount of dye, do I still get enough acid and auxillary chemistry to get a good fast dye job? OR is it better to reduce the time in the dye pot?

Since I have never done this, I would suggest that you consult ProChem for the answer to this question. Their technical department is quite helpful, and, unlike many dye suppliers, they do read their e-mail.

It seems likely that you might need a bit more acid, but it would be best to ask.

They also sell other types of acid dyes, to which you add your own vinegar or other auxilliaries, which would allow more versatility.

See http://www.prochemical.com/contact.htm . They also have some One Shot instructions at http://www.prochemical.com/directions/OneShot.htm which seem to imply that less dye should work just fine.

Message: I am looking for a supplier of procion dyes in South Africa

Sorry, but I have never been able to locate
one. I know of at least one South African
dyer who uses Cibacron K dyes, instead. They
are quite similar to Procion MX, though they
have a slightly narrower range of colors to
mix from. The same recipes can be used.

I cannot, however, tell you where in South
Africa to buy even the Cibracron dyes. No
one has been willing to share this information
with me. I would tell you if I knew.

There are dye suppliers in Europe that will
ship anywhere. See the "Sources for Supplies"
page on my web site to locate these.

I'll untie it before I wash it, right?

Usually people rinse with the ties in, and then with the ties out.

I confess that I usually do no rinsing at all, and remove the rubber bands with blunt scissors just before dumping everything into a washing machine that has been filled with cold water and Synthrapol. Synthrapol is a special detergent (available only from dye suppliers) which makes dye less likely to transfer from one section to another.

It is safest to rinse before removing the ties, but not always necessary, depending on how detailed your design is and how light the lightest parts are.

I'm interested in learning some Japanese silk dying techniques but I haven't been able to find much information on them. I was wondering if you might know anything about them? The Yuuzen styles are of particular interest to me. Thank you very much for any help you may be able to supply

No, sorry, I don't know much about them, personally. I have no experience with Yuzen resist dyeing.

For information on Japanese dyeing techniques, I strongly recommend books by Yoshiko Iwamoto Wada, specifically these two:
Memory on Cloth: Shibori Now
Shibori: The Inventive Art of Japanese Shaped Resist Dyeing Tradition Techniques Innovation

A less expensive book on the subject of Shibori is by Karren K. Brito:
Shibori: Creating Color and Texture on Silk

Unfortunately, none of these books has much to say about Yuzen.

Message: My daughter wants to have a tie-dye birthday party. What dye do you recommend to get the most vibrant colors? We have used the RIt dyes, but the colors are faded. Would I be better to purchase the 50/50 blend shirts or 100% cotton? You have so much information, it is hard to decide on exactly what is the best to use for this purpose.

Don't use all purpose dye (such as Rit brand dye) for tie-dyeing - the boiling-water recipe required is a lot of trouble, and the colors are not as bright nor as washfast. You need to use cool water fiber reactive dye. Mail order will save you a lot of money and get you the highest quality dye. Mail-order fiber reactive dye will cost approximately 1/6 as much as locally-purchased "all purpose" dye, per shirt, and yet it is vastly superior in every way.

I recommend you buy a tie dye kit from http://www.prochemical.com - see http://www.prochemical.com/catalog/mxkits.htm , and use the "cool" colors to get the very brightest results. So-called "warm" colors are more muted. Another good source for kits is Scarlet Zebra - see http://www.scarlet-zebra.com/Dyes/MX-Kits.htm . The kits on the latter page contain more dye and are a better value, and it is the same dye.

You should certainly use 100% cotton. 50% cotton will produce pastels - pretty pastels, but not the vibrancy you asked for. 80% cotton will work well enough, too. 100% is best.

I would appreciate any info you have on this.

I have many times tie-dyed screen-printed items, but never screen-printed an already dyed item. This is because one does end up with boring printed tees that really need some dye to jazz them up. We didn't really plan it.

The worst that can happen is that the screen printing will have pastel colors against a dark background of dyed fabric, if the dye does adhere a little bit the the ink. Only with white ink, of course. You'd never even see it on black ink.

If the screen printing is so badly done that it will come off when the garments are washed, then it will come off when they are dyed, too. Not much you can do about that, though. It would not be any better to have the screen printing come off in the wash than while dyeing. Dyeing does not seem to be at all hard on screen printing ink.

I'm firmly in favor of doing it the easy way!

Good luck.

Message: im trying to dye satin. im not sure if i should dye the material first then make the dress because it may shrink. plus, the dress will be yellow up the stop fading into white in the middle and teal at the bottom. i need some suggestions prom in one month. thanks.

Satin is a weave, not a fiber. Dyeing requires that you match the type of dye to the fiber. Satin may be made of polyester, rayon, nylon, silk, cotton, etc. Polyester cannot be dyed with cotton or silk dye. Cotton cannot be dyed with silk or polyester dye.

Dyeing the fabric first is often wisest, because then there are no issues concerning shrinkage.

See the following page if your fabric is made of polyester or acetate:

http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dispersedye.shtml

See other pages on the same site for other types of fabric.

Message: I recently acquired an autograph on a white cotton t-shirt, which hasn't yet been laundered. Is there any way to help set the dye so that it won't fade? The autograph was made with a black Sharpie marking pen.

The black Sharpie pen was a good choice. It should last through many launderings. However, if this is a very valuable autograph, you may wish to quit wearing the shirt much, in order to reduce the number of launderings, so that it will last longer.

If there is any chance that it was NOT a Sharpie pen, you should avoid washing it at all. We have seen such signatures disappear on the first washing.

A fabric paint will protect anything underneath it from wear. You can buy "clear" fabric paint, which is intended for use as a base to add pigment to. Probably "ProFab Base Extender" would work for this purpose; see http://www.prochemical.com/catalog/colorconcentrates.htm . Test it first, though, on an unimportant Sharpie pen mark on some scrap fabric. Before ordering, you should contact the company (via http://www.prochemical.com/contact.htm ) to ask whether the extender is clear enough to work for this purpose.

Message: How do you remove tye-die from your skin? Help! My hands are pink!!! Thanks a bunch!

Time is the best answer. Here's a quote from "How can I get the dye off my hands?" in the FAQ section of my website:

Dye stains will wear off within one to three days, when the outermost
layer of skin cells is shed. While a hand cleaner, ReDuRan, can be
used, not everyone finds it effective enough to be worth the trouble.
You should certainly not use bleach to remove the dye (bleach is a
far more hazardous chemical than the dyes!), but a loofah or other
scrubber is often quite helpful in removing dye from the skin, simply
by removing the dyed skin cells.

Message: I am trying to find someone who will dye 3 shawls for me for a wedding. The wedding is in a couple of weeks, so I'm in rather a rush. I appreciate your assistance.

I'm sorry, but it is nearly impossible to have anything custom-dyed for you these days, unless it is art cloth or tie-dyeing. Rush jobs are, if anything, even more impossible.

Your question is addressed on the following page on my web site:

http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dispersedye.shtml
(Scroll down to "Is there someone who will dye my polyester formal for me?".)

Message: Is it possible to dye polyester fur? We have a monkey costume that is gray, but needs to be brown for a dance production in June. Our monkey looks like a squirrel instead and it's not possible to make another one. Thanks.

I've never tried it. If it is possible, you would follow the information found on the following page:

http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dispersedye.shtml

However, boiling might ruin the fur's texture completely. It would be safer to use thin fabric paint. See http://www.dharmatrading.com for several different high-quality types of fabric paint. Thick paint would clump the fur and be entirely inappropriate, but thin paint might work.

You should remove a scrap of the material to test, if possible.

Message: Hello. I hope you can help me with my problem. I've never used a dye for anything except for tye-dying t-shirts in high school years ago. This time, it's not for fun. I bought a very expensive swimsuit last year, only to wear it twice. I hand washed it and layed it on a wooden drying rack(eeek!). I tryed using stain remover and pretreated it with Tide numerous times. I found that it only made it worse. I would love to be able to wear it again, if possible. It's 80% nylon and 20% cotton. I read that the blend is commonly dyed. The stains are still there, with lots of fading around it. Could you PLEASE help me. I need to know basically what brand, colors, and process to use. I'm thinking it would be a miracle, but I know it's got to be easier than I think.

It's not nearly as difficult as dyeing polyester, at least.

Nylon can be dyed with acid dyes, which are common and easy to use. You can actually dye nylon with all-purpose dye, such as Rit brand dye, because one of the ingredients is acid dye, although I would strongly recommend you avoid all-purpose dye for cottons. You can ignore the 20% cotton in your swimsuit. Rit works with nylon, if you add vinegar and use water as hot as the swimsuit can tolerate, preferably for an hour or more.

It's best not to try to produce a single color, because the stain will probably still show. Try to do a combination of a couple of colors. It'll be more interesting that way, anyway.

Acid dye requires the use of a mild acid, such as vinegar, plus heat. See the following for instructions, buying the dyes and auxiliary chemicals from the same site:
http://www.prochemical.com/directions/WF_ImmersionNylon.htm
http://www.prochemical.com/directions/WF_DirectApplicationNylon.htm (Hand apply a mixture of two or more colors)
http://www.prochemical.com/directions/OneShot.htm

Or, if you choose to use all purpose dye, see this page:
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/rit-tie-dye.shtml

If you use water that is not hot enough for optimal results, the dye will gradually wear off, but you can always repeat the process, if necessary.

Message: Hi! I'm a school psychologist at a K-8th grade school. I am fixing up a corner of a work room to do individual counseling. A local motel donated 10 white sheets to us. I want to tie dye them and then use them as partial partitions (from the ceiling to the room divider--- approximately 2 feet in length and 13 ft in width for 2 sides). Anyway, I liked the idea of doing vertical stripes; I also need to incorporate yellow into the design because that's the color of the drain board surrounding the sink. I am concerned that this idea of mine might turn out to be rather expensive. I also have no clue how much dye to bye for this project. What do you suggest? Thanks.

It is important to mail-order the dye from an inexpensive source, and to use very concentrated dye. All purpose dye, such as Rit, costs a lot, using a $2-$3 box for just one yard of fabric, but fiber reactive dyes, which are much easier to use and come in prettier colors, are much less expensive per yard.

Two ounces of Procion MX type dye will color approximately 14 yards of fabric. A full-size sheet is about 54 by 75 inches, or 3.1 yards, so you'll need a little over six ounces of dye, total, for your ten sheets. Look at the colors and prices at http://www.prochemical.com/catalog/mx.htm . A "Cool Dye Sampler" dye kit would contain 8 ounces of dye and cost $10 plus perhaps $6 shipping. Not bad at all, considering that all of the ingredients you need are included. Or consider the Tie-dye kit, also on http://www.prochemical.com/catalog/mxkits.htm , for $15. As you can see, this is far more economical than using All Purpose dye from the local store, even with shipping added in. It would probably be best to buy a kit and add a jar or two of your favorite colors of PRO MX dye in addition. It's also good to try tie-dyeing a t-shirt or something first, to make sure you understand the recipe, before you try your large scale dyeing session

if you could help me out on this it would be greatly apretiated. Thank you!!!

I hope that you were able to find the answers to your questions before your lab. I'm afraid that, even if I had seen your message in time, many of these questions are beyond the scope of what is appropriate to answer by e-mail, especially taken together as a group. To find out what dye is, you can consult a dictionary or encyclopedia. Other questions may be answered by closely studying the pages on this site, such as the following:

• About Dyes

• A science fair project on the difference of synthetic and natural dyes

• Frequently Asked Questions About Dyeing (and related issues)


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

[Updated July 25, 2008.]

Message: I got a bleach stain on a navy polyester/lycra skirt. Will your fabric dyes correct this? I'm in a panic as it is brand new!

They're not *my* dyes, exactly, since I do not sell dye, but there is an answer to this question on my web site:

http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/bleachmistake.shtml

Polyester can be dyed only with special polyester dye; see
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/dispersedye.shtml.

Message: hi! i have a king size comforter that i'd love to tie dye yellow and blue. i do not want it to be green at all and i wonder how to go about this. do i need to dye it yeoow then tie it and sqirt blue? or what? thanks for any help!

First, is the cover of the comforter 100% cotton? Synthetics cannot be dyed with the same dyes that work on cotton and silk.

Next point: all dye, of any type, is transparent, so any part of the comforter that gets both yellow and blue, whether at the same time or in different steps, WILL be green.

To avoid any hint of green, you can either make quite sure that yellow and blue go only on different parts of the comforter - this is quite difficult with tying - or you can use opaque fabric paint for the second color.

Fabric paint is not as nice as dye, because you can always feel the paint on the fabric. A high quality special fabric paint will change the feel of the fabric only a little, but lower quality fabric paints and acrylic paint can make the fabric quite rough. Unfortunately, there are few fabric paints that are truly opaque. Opacity is easier to obtain with a thick coating of fabric paint, but this has obvious effects on the feel of the fabric. Look for opaque fabric paints on the following pages:
http://www.dickblick.com/zz029/00/products.asp?param=0&ig_id=5237
http://www.fabricstodyefor.com/jacquard/jacquard_dyes_paints/neopaque.htm
http://www.prochemical.com/catalog/opaquetextile.htm

I recommend that you use only fiber reactive dye, such as Procion MX, when dyeing cotton, because its heat requirements are minimal and it is very bright, easy to use, and washfast (that is, it does not wash out). You could use blue dye and then add opaque yellow fabric paint, or you could use blue dye for tie-dyeing, complete that step with washing and drying, then carefully hand-apply yellow dye, on the places where the comforter stayed white in the blue-dyeing step. Note that the yellow dye tends to
spread more easily than other colors, so use just a bit until you see how far it is going to spread. Soda ash can be used as a pre-soak before dyeing, or added to the dye itself. The latter may be preferable for the yellow-dye step, since wet fabric encourages dye to spread farther. In the blue-dyeing step, be sure to tie very tightly with rubber bands or artificial sinew, so that enough areas stay white afterwards.

Dyeing a large, bulky item is much more difficult than dyeing something small, just because of the unwieldiness. I strongly recommend that you practice on t-shirts or inexpensive cotton pillowcases.

Have two pair one year denium jeans with noticable color loss in several places. Most are at the upper part of garments. A few isolated small spots appear as though. znot much equipnet, Boght pk denium RFITG, Spse claims it wikk turn garments pink, Would like to simply restore some of rte color.

You cannot restore denim to its original appearance with dye, because the denim look is obtained by weaving white thread with indigo blue thread, in a twill pattern. If you dye denim, the white fibers will be dyed and no longer be white. You can dye denim to
make solid colors, but not the original look.

For covering up light spots, see "How can I fix the bleach spots on my favorite clothing?" at http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/bleachmistake.shtml .

Message: I wonder who actually manufactures Pro Chem/G & K dyes and also who manufactires for the Cushing company?

I have heard that these companies buy
dyes from many different manufacturers,
most of which are located in Asia. To
find out for certain, you must contact
ProChemical, G&K, and Cushing directly.