Tiedye is a fabric dyeing techique based on traditional Japanese art of Shibori. It had an huge popularity all over the world in the 80's and 90's and has been a trend again recently.
You can create your own unique patterns on clothes such as t-shirts, scarves, skirts and jeans with Tiedye techiques. It can also be applied to fabric based household items such as curtains, seat covers, carpets and rugs.
Being practical and economical are tiedye's most appealing characteristics. You can turn your basic white t-shirt into a trendy one in a short time just using household supplies. Likewise, you can create a colorful tablecloth from a simple piece of fabric.
Tiedye Methods
The techniques used in traditional Shibori art lie at the root of the patterns created with Tiedye. The most common of these is the rolling method. In this technique, you roll your fabric around a long stick. After that you can create patterns by using tools such as rope or rubber bands.
The folding method is the general name given to many shibori techniques. You can create endless different variations by folding a fabric or creating spirals with the help of tools such as threads, beads and clothespins.
A reminder! The more you use tools like ropes and rubber bands, the less paint will penetrate to your fabric. As you practice, your control over the fabric will increase and you will get better results.
How to Tiedye your clothes?
Tiedye kits are the products which contain the materials required for this process. These sets include paints in various colors, dyeing bottles, plastic gloves and rubber bands.
Before starting to dye make sure that your fabric is clean. Do not forget to take precautions against spills and splashes in the process area. Before applying the paint, dissolve it with warm water. You can use one color or choose more which are compatible with each other.
You can use Fiske fabric dye stabiliser after finishing dyeing to avoid color bleeding.