Ombre Fire Goddess

Step 2:

- Mix up 1 bottle of Cocoa Brown dye with 1 cup of salt in 3 gallons of very hot 140˚ water in a large plastic container, at least 5 gallon in size. Note: The amount of dye was doubled for this project to achieve a very deep, dark shade.

- Pre-moisten the fabric keeping it folded in half. Holding the raw edges, dip the fabric into the dyebath about halfway. Moving the fabric in and out of the dyebath in a dipping motion. This will give you a nice subtle gradation of color. Do this for about 20 minutes. It's OK to leave it at a certain level for a few minutes at a time but watch that you don't get a hard line of color. Then dip further into the dye so about 2/3 of the fabric is in the dyebath. Again, move the fabric in a dipping motion for about another 10 minutes. For this project, a very deep color was desired. You can easily alter the timing of your dip-dye to achieve lighter tones.

Step 3:

- Remove from the dyebath. Holding the fabric from the undyed, raw edge, rinse in cool water until the water runs clear. This allows the excess dye to flow through to the darkest area.

- Clean out your plastic container for the next dye color. Mix up 1 bottle of Scarlet dye with 1 cup of salt in 3 gallons of very hot 140˚ water in the large plastic container. Turn the fabric over so the undyed portion is facing down. Dip the fabric the fabric halfway to meet the brown dye line. Using the same technique as above, continue to dip and dye the Scarlet area for about 20 minutes. Then dip into the brown area for gradual color blending for another 10 minutes. When you achieve the color desired. Remove from dyebath.

Step 4:

- Holding the fabric from the brown end, rinse out the excess Scarlet dye in cool water until the water runs clear. Wash in warm water in mild detergent and dry.

- Lay out the fabric folding the length in half the same as it was dyed. Cut out a general silhouette of sleeves and a neckline you desire. For this project, a "V" neck was cut into the front. Stitch along the side seams and under the arms. Note: If your fabric has a "right" side, make sure it is facing in before sewing.

- Basically, you now have a simple robe gown. To create a form-fitting shape, simply stitch or glue the long length of tulle around the neckline. Leave the rest loose to be wrapped around the gown when worn. The length of the tulle is depends on how many times you like it wrapped around.

- For this project we glued feathers randomly around the bottom of the gown for a flame effect but feel free to add flowers, felt shapes, glitter designs, etc. Anything to make your goddess extra special can be added to personalize your creation.