Name: Misti
Message: I have a Lavender formal dress that I would like to dye black.  Is black an easy color to dye? And, should I attempt it?

Black isn't difficult in itself, but your dress probably is.

First, you cannot dye anything that is not washable. Is your dress washable?

Second, you don't mention what fiber your dress is made of. If it is made of, say, unlined silk satin, or rayon, or cotton velveteen, it will be easy to dye, if it is washable. (If it is lined, it will not be washable.) 

However, if it is made of polyester or acetate satin, it will be far beyond your abilities to dye it. Polyester and acetate both require lengthy boiling with a special dye for synthetic fibers called disperse dye. You cannot dye them with all-purpose dye, nor with fiber reactive dye. Nylon can be dyed with acid dye, but only if there are no surface contaminants to interfere with the dye.

It is very easy to dye dresses made of cotton, rayon, or silk, if they are washable, but a polyester formal is essentially undyeable.

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