Tutorial: DIY dip dyed shirt

First of all, hellooooo!!! And sorry :( It’s been so long since the last time I touched the blog :( I’ve been busy with revisions and exams, and also I’ve been diving in my art coursework @.@ But now that I got all those put aside (for 3 weeks), I can get back to bloggingヽ(；▽；)ノ OK back to the subject.

Dip dyed/Ombre/Gradient stuffs have been quite a buzz recently, especially when summer comes. A bit sad because my ombre hair is not so unique anymore, boohoo.

Anw, I’ve always wanted a gradient pink vest, but it’s no where to be found. If there’s something similar it’d be 10 times the price I’m willing to pay for a tank top @.@ That’s why I decided to do-it-myself >:)

What you’re going to need:

-White top/skirt/shorts/etc.

-Fabric dye for hand use (this tutorial is for the Dylon fabric dye 50g pack)

-Rubber gloves

-Salt (250g or 5 table spoons)

-Warm water (500ml + 6l)

-Stainless steel sink or anything you can sacrifice to dye your garment.

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Preparation:

This week I went to H&M and saw this cute white see-thru vest/tank top. At first I still pick it up right away just because it was the last one my size, but I still looked for a plain white no-texture one. They did have it but it was too thin, like super thin, so I decided to buy this one, cause I thought the texture might come out nicely ♥

(Actually I bought 2 cause I still need a white one. Come on it’s summer, and white goes with every coloured shorts! And it was as cheap as £3.99)

Then I went to Fabric Land to buy my fabric dyes. Dylon is a good brand and they have many colours! You can find them on Amazon and Ebay as well.

Remember to buy the fabric dye for hand use, since you need to hand dye to obtain the gradation. I bought Flamingo Pink and Tulip Red cause I want it to be more like fuchsia instead of bright pink.

You’ll need the first 500ml of warm water to dissolve the dye. I didn’t have anything to measure so I used 1/3 of an empty 1.5l water bottle :P

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Action:

1. Wash your garment thoroughly and leave damp.

2.Dissolve the pack into 500ml of warm water (I used 1/2 of each pack).

*Actually a whole pack dyes up to 250g of fabric so I didn’t need that much dye for a tank top; I should’ve used 1/4 each and just 250ml of warm water.*

3. Pour 6l warm water into your bowl/sink and stir in 5tbsp salt.

4. Add dye and stir well.

Here comes the perfectly white top *shaking hands*.

5. “Dip” just the bottom of the shirt into the bowl. Hang it somewhere or you’ll have to hold it for 45 min. I hung it on the handle of my drawer.

6. After 45 min, add more warm water and salt into the dye (how much more water depends on how light you want the colour to be).

Adding more water is to make the dye thinner, hence the gradation. I’m not sure what the salt is for but I just added it to be sure :”>

Be careful when you pour more water in cause it may splash onto the part where you don’t want the dye to be (like I did TT_TT).

7. Lower your shirt to dye the upper part. Leave it like that for another 30-45′.

8. Almost there! Squeeze out the dye then rinse the shirt in cold water. You might want to do that in the tub, it’d be easier.

Next, wash it in warm water.

9. Dry away from direct heat & sunlight.

I went to bed leaving it hanging in my room and it was dried when I woke up

(You might want to put some plastic bag or towels underneath so the dye won’t stain your floor, no matter how long you wash it the dye still comes out at that moment).