Introduction: White Towels? BORING!! Dye Em Up With Good Ole RIT

By Fiber Artsy

A FiberArtsy Fun Tutorial

Here's More Dyeing Fun for ya!


This tutorial shows you the technique I used on the red towel. Here are the other techniques:

Kumo Shibori (purple towel): Click here

Suji Method (turquoise towel): Find it here


I tell ya, nothing is safe around here. If something at my house is a solid color, it’s only a matter of time before I add some bright color and dye it up!

If you’ve been following my dyeing tutorials, you know I usually use professional dyes. Sometimes, I’ll bust out the Kool-Aid or food coloring. This time, I wanted to see how good Rit Dyes are. I must say, I was impressed with the depth of color I got on these tea towels.

I am going to show how to dye the fuscia towel using rocks and marbles. I’m not sure what that technique is called but basically, all you do is tie rocks into the towel which results in pretty sunbursts or circles.

Step 1: Supplies:

- Flour Sack Dish Towels

– I love these 100% Cotton Flour Sack Towels!

- Liquid Rit Dye

– Fuchsia- Rocks or Marbles

- Thread

- Old Pot (no longer used for cooking)

- Salt

- Hot Water

- Stove

Step 2: Tying:

Wrap a rock or marble into your towel and wind the thread tightly around the base of the rock several times. Tie a knot. Do this all over the towel to get lots of circles.

Step 3: Dyeing:

Fill your pot with hot water, then add about 1/2 cup of salt. Stir to dissolve. Carefully, add the dye to the water. The more dye, the deeper the color. I used about 1/2 of the bottle to get a nice, strong fuscia.

Place your rock wrapped towel in the dyebath. Start with high heat, then turn down and simmer for 45 minutes.

Step 4: Finishing:

After the allotted time, very carefully remove the towel from the dyebath. Old tongs are a big help! Rinse thoroughly in warm water until the water runs clear, then remove the thread and rocks and continue rinsing until the excess dye has been removed. Finally, rinse with cold water and hang to dry.

Pretty! Wash them separately at first, just in case they bleed. Altho, with proper heat setting and rinsing, that should be minimal.

Enjoy!

Annette
FiberArtsy.com