Wild tee creations as simple art
For those with art skills that reached a peak around second-grade, tie-dye may just be the perfect craft.
So what if you can’t paint inside the lines? You can sure as hell squirt a bottle. Combining chemistry with pure luck makes tie-dye a vehicle for anyone to become an artist.
Materials:
- Fabric dye (usually comes in powder form)
- Squirt Bottles
- Rubber bands
- Gloves
- A large container that can hold at least four quarts of water
- One packet of soda ash
- The fabric that you want to dye (should be made of natural material, like cotton)
Note: While most of these items are available at any local craft store, it may be easier to simply buy a pre-packaged tie-dye kit.
Dye-proof the floor:
The first thing you want to do is to find a large surface to tie-dye on. A large table, counter or even the floor will do. Grab some trash bags, cut them down the middle to increase the width.
Then lay them across the surface and secure them with tape. After the trash bags are taped down, lay paper towels on top.
Get dying
1. Soak
Pour four quarts of hot water into a large container of your choice. Then mix in three teaspoons of soda ash and put the fabric you wish to dye inside. Let it soak for twenty minutes.
When the twenty minutes is over, ring out the fabric but do not rinse it.
2. Time to dye
Lay the wet fabric on the protected surface and get ready to try out these classic tie-dye techniques.
THE SUNBURST PATTERN
First you need to decide where you want the sunburst design to appear on the fabric. Once you have done that, pull up the fabric creating a four-inch tube. Apply several rubber bands along the length of the tube.
As you begin to dye, make sure that you are getting the crevices of the fabric so that you do not accidentally leave large portions of white fabric.
THE RAINBOW SWIRLS
The rainbow pattern is probably the most common tie-dye pattern. Coincidentally it is also the most simple. Lay out the fabric and pinch a part of it, twisting it until to create one large swirl. The entire piece of fabric should be involved in this shape. Then use three rubber bands to secure the pattern. Then, squirt away!
Of course if neither of these methods seems kosher, let your creativity run wild.
Things to remember while tie-dying: the dyes are darker and more powerful then they seem. Tread softly and color lightly.
Contact CU Campus Press Writer Emily Sturges at emily.sturges@thecampuspress.com
