I was excited to see Dharma Trading putting out a dye that could be used in the washing machine. I'm not much into dying fabrics, etc - but I like having the option. ;-) Oh, I know, the grocery store brand is out there - but I think I like having the experience of Dharma in that little color packet.
So, here goes my review...
item to dye: white cotton jersey dress <bought from Dharma)
color: "Brilliant Blue" - 1packet
washing machine method - hot water - 45 minutes - then washed in cold with a touch of detergent / rinsed in cold - lightly dried in the dryer / currently on hanger to finish by air drying
The color is just what I wanted. The dress isn't quite dry and looks splotchy due to damp spots...but it's not all due to that. It looks like the dye took a bit unevenly. I don't fault Dharma for this - they state the brighter colors might need 2 packets.
item to dye: 3 rayon sashes (6"x72")(and yep, from Dharma)
color: "Chartreuse" 1 packet
stove top method (washer doesn't have super low water level setting) - simmered 30 minutes / stirring frequently - washed lightly by hand with a drop or two of dish detergent - rinsed & lightly dried in dryer - may need to rinse again, in the machine, just to be sure they're rinsed out well
Again, the color turned out well. I think I was expecting something a little lighter in shade, but overall, I'm pleased.
My next project will be the scrap left over from my tablecloth skirt. I want to experiment with the dye (black) for polyesters. ((Remember, I made this skirt from inexpensive tablecloths from WallyWorld.))
So, here goes my review...
item to dye: white cotton jersey dress <bought from Dharma)
color: "Brilliant Blue" - 1packet
washing machine method - hot water - 45 minutes - then washed in cold with a touch of detergent / rinsed in cold - lightly dried in the dryer / currently on hanger to finish by air drying
The color is just what I wanted. The dress isn't quite dry and looks splotchy due to damp spots...but it's not all due to that. It looks like the dye took a bit unevenly. I don't fault Dharma for this - they state the brighter colors might need 2 packets.
item to dye: 3 rayon sashes (6"x72")(and yep, from Dharma)
color: "Chartreuse" 1 packet
stove top method (washer doesn't have super low water level setting) - simmered 30 minutes / stirring frequently - washed lightly by hand with a drop or two of dish detergent - rinsed & lightly dried in dryer - may need to rinse again, in the machine, just to be sure they're rinsed out well
Again, the color turned out well. I think I was expecting something a little lighter in shade, but overall, I'm pleased.
My next project will be the scrap left over from my tablecloth skirt. I want to experiment with the dye (black) for polyesters. ((Remember, I made this skirt from inexpensive tablecloths from WallyWorld.))
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Atlanta
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Mon, September 15, 2008 - 3:48 PMWow please let us know what the black results are like!
Years ago I tried dying an old wedding dress black to be a vamp dress for halloween. The lace dyed a deep dark black and the satin skirt stayed a gunmetal silver grey.
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Mon, September 15, 2008 - 5:59 PMI'll have to check this out. Although, I've used their Procion dyes in the machine very successfully, you just have to keep stopping & resetting the cycle back to the beginning so it doesn't drain out prematurely, and keep track of how much water goes in each size load. I think I was setting the load size to minimum and adding the water for the dye bath manually. -
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Tue, September 16, 2008 - 6:47 AMMargaret,
I had to keep resetting the machine - but there's a long cycle on the *regular* setting
...something like 15 minutes. It wasn't too inconvenient.
And I think the *minimum* water setting may have actually been too much for the one item. I had considered getting 2 packets of dye...should've gone with my instinct ;-) -
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Tue, September 16, 2008 - 9:25 AMI like RIT dye myself. Seeing as how my grandmother used it, and it does have a washer method.
The only thing with ANY dye is that when it is bright, leave it in longer. It's not going to traumatize your fabric (at least RIT doesn't) and it will be that color, even if you only have one packet. -
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Tue, September 16, 2008 - 9:41 AMOctavia,
I've used RIT dyes for years...mostly to *freshen* up black clothing and have tried the navy blue out on old jeans. That stuff has been around forever, but seems to have all but disappeared from the common grocery / drugstore shelves around here.
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Sat, September 27, 2008 - 5:41 PM...disappointing results on the black
used the iDye Poly for 100% polyester tablecloths from WalMart...(2) packets...lowest & hottest water setting on washer...kept it going for 1 hour...turned out a silvery gray...it's a pretty color, not muddy at all...but it's not black
;-( :-( :-( -
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Mon, September 29, 2008 - 5:21 PMI contacted Dharma today - and they were real quick with a response.
They answered my questions about the *lilac* turning blue ((different thread titled *violet* dye turned blue)). Yeah, my bad - it was lilac that turned out blue, not *violet*. Anway......
Ok, for the black...
a. It's the hardest color to get to *take*. <<just like me to find the most difficult thing to do, hunh?>>
b. Sometimes it takes more than one dye bath.
c. It takes really hot water to get this to work right. The washing machine water doesn't get hot enough for a long enough time. <<Ok, off to the dollar store for a really big pot>>
c. Some polyesters will simply just not take the dye. Their email mentioned they had tried to dye a polyester polar fleece 3 times and it just wouldn't take.
So, I think I'll give this another shot. -
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Fri, October 17, 2008 - 6:27 AMOK - 2nd try at dyeing polyester ((white to black))
stove top method - 1 hour simmer - 1 hour *sit* time - washed in machine with touch of detergent - turned out black with overtone of ??olive green??......kinda' like my black yoga pants that have been through the wash a few too many times
I think I'll give this one more try. Maybe the detergent I used was too strong or maybe I used too much...... I think Dharma offers a "fixative" I might be able to use.
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Sun, November 9, 2008 - 6:23 PMMy weekend project is a wonderful skirt I just found at Out of the Closet- sort of a skirt version of the Endless Wave Pantaloons, gored with vertical flounces running up the seams and corset-style lacing at the waist... but hideous pukey light green. And polyester, according to the label, but it feels like rayon. So I'm trying out the Idye Poly in green.
So far, so bad. 1 hour on the stove, haven't rinsed it yet, but even thought I've stirred it every few minutes, it is blotchy and uneven, and the color is flat and uninteresting- and it will undoubtedly dry much lighter after it's rinsed. I only used one packet of dye, so I'm going back tomorrow to get another green and a yellow, maybe that will make it more interesting. And the lace and ribbon streamers on the skirt sucked up the color and are a nice rich spinach green, but it looks like crap against the rest of the skirt. I think I'll also throw in some of their regular Idye, in case there really is rayon in it- it doesn't have that strange feel I pick up from most polyester.
BTW, for those in Los Angeles, KitKraft carries it in store.
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Tue, November 11, 2008 - 7:11 PMI used the iDye to dye a silk veil and scarf (from Dharma Trading) sun yellow. I used the stove top method and "cooked" it for 1 hour to make sure it really took the dye. They came out beautifully (awesome since I hadn't done this before)!!! -
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Tue, November 11, 2008 - 8:54 PMI've tried the black velvet color also, both on 100% cotton, reset the washing machine at LEAST 10 times, put plenty of salt...came out olive green...which I actually like...but, it isn't black.
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Re: ...new Dharma iDye try-out
Wed, November 12, 2008 - 5:21 AMA friend of mine dyed one of Dharma's silk veils the sun yellow...with a touch of tie-dye in purple. It came out very, very pretty.
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