A Post About Dying...

... fabric that is!

Once upon a time, about a year or two ago, my mum bought be this really nice green dress from Target (how fancy!) I liked it, but I didn't love it. She initially thought the colour would suit me (my eyes are green) but boy, was she wrong! Darker greens go well, but this colour looked awful on my skin. So, away into my cupboard it went...

Until a few weeks ago, when I was going through my closet and rediscovered the green dress. I tried it on and realised that I do really like the style. But the colour was a big no-no. Why not dye it? I said. I haven't done much dying before, but thought it couldn't go too bad!

I chose to dye it (the green dress) black. Please don't cry!  Growing up, my mum has always worn a lot of black. I always said to her that she should wear more colour... but I don't do that so much anymore because 70% of my own wardrobe is black (or navy). I love that the colour is so neutral, will go with pretty much everything and can be prettied up with a bunch of colourful accessories. Besides, I knew the colour would suit me (because I normally wear a heap of black anyhow) and because it's so dark, any dying mishaps would hardly be noticeable!

Off we went to Spotlight and found some dye...

The range of dyes was a bit overwhelming so be sure to choose the appropriate dye for the job! The type of dye depends on what material the garment/fabric is made from. There's lots of different sorts... ones that can be done in the washing machine, others need salt... ours was for synthetic fabrics and needed to be dyed on the stove for about 40 minutes.

All specific details are on your dye packet, and as I said, vary quite a bit! First I had to put in the colour (in a soluable packet, smart!) and then the colour intensifier...

After nearly an hour of constant stirring (if you leave it to sit, the colour can potentially be uneven), my arm felt like it was about to fall off and my legs were killing me...

Next we had to rinse the dress in water to get rid of any excess dye that didn't soak into the fabric and then put it in the wash. And then wait... when it finally came out it felt like I had just bought a new dress... expect instead of coming from the shop, it came from the dryer!

As you can see above, the dress didn't really come out black, but more grey-ish. I could have left it in the pot longer to get a darker colour, but really I like the colour that it is. It's still dark, so it matches my skin tone and still neutral enough to be worn with almost anything. And besides I love how it looks with black tights and shoes!

Sorry for the photo overload... but any ideas where these photos were taken? Yes, in Wattle Cottage! Don't you just love the flooring (a whole update post is coming soon)? Because we don't have mcuh furniture yet, it's the perfect place to take photos!

Now I love the dress and can't wait to wear it a lot more often! A simple change in colour can make me feel so much more confident wearing it... funny that!

Have you ever been brave enough to dye something? What was it? Any horrible stories, or success stories?