Supplies
- Rit All-Purpose Liquid Dye: Neon Green
- Rit ColorStay Dye Fixative
- White Cotton Sweater
- Salt
- Mild Detergent
- Large Container for Dyeing
- Gloves
- Plastic Table Cover
- Paper Towels
Time
Total: 1 Hour
Difficulty
Beginner
Instructions
The sweater we dyed was 100% cotton, so we used Rit All-Purpose Dye with the directions below. A lot of sweaters these days are made with acrylic fibers, which requires our dye for synthetics, Rit DyeMore. Directions for using Rit DyeMore can be found here.
- Cover table with plastic and gather your supplies.
- Prewash sweater to remove any finishes that may interfere with dye absorption.
- Wearing rubber gloves, fill a large container with 3 gallons of very hot water. The water should ideally be 140ºF. If tap water is not hot enough, heat water on the stove and add to the dyebath.
- Add ½ cup of well-shaken Neon Green dye or color of choice into dyebath.
- To enhance the color, add one cup of salt. Add 1 teaspoon of liquid dish detergent to help promote level dyeing. Stir well.
- Test color by dipping a paper towel into the dyebath. If color is too light, add more dye; if color is too dark, add more water.
- Immerse sweater in dyebath. Stir slowly and continuously. The first 10 minutes are the most critical. Stirring helps to ensure an even color with no splotches.
- Use Rit ColorStay Dye Fixative immediately after dyeing and before washing to enhance the color and reduce bleeding. Follow package instructions.
- Rinse sweater in cold water until rinse water begins to run clear.
- Wash in warm water with mild detergent, rinse and dry.
- And enjoy!
