Dyed clothes are a huge trend right now, and for good reason! They add personality and uniqueness to an outfit. And if you're living it up and making loads to tie dye in your backyard, follow this quick and easy guide on how to get tie dye clean in 5 minutes. Keep reading for our tips!
The first step is to move your tie dye to a plastic plastic container or bag after finishing dye-process. Most dyes will set within 24 hours, however if you are not in a rush, you can wait 48h.
An important detail is to to keep your dye set damp and out of direct sunlight for best results. I always tie dye with my kids in the summer, and store my home made tie dyes in the garage, its hot in there, dark and the kids won’t get into it.
Once the dye has set, we recommend rinsing the dye in a laundry sink (or in the back yard) to remove all the excess dye. Make sure you wear gloves since the dye will still stain your skin, and while it won’t harm you, its never fun to have stained hands. Rinse until you can see no more color and pop in the wash on a cold and quick cycle. Skip the detergent because it probably won’t do much. We always use a 15m tap water quick cycle with an extra rinse.
If your machine doesn’t have this cycle, or you use a laundromat, we recommend rinsing until clear, adding a bit of soap and letting the item sit for 5 minutes in the soap and rising again. Make sure to ring it out throughly and hang to dry.
Dark tie dye - if you are washing out dark tie dye, especially red or purple tie dye, we suggest you wash it in the machine a few extra times, red dye is notorious for running, we’ve all heard the pink laundry horror stories. The same is true for purple, black and blue, albeit not to the same extent as red.
Light tie dye like pastels are much easier to deal with and typically will be totally dye free after the first machine wash, if you are feeling anxious you can go for one more or repeat the rinsing under the sink between washes.
Pro tip: Do not combine light tie dye like a pastel tee with a fun black tee during a rinse or wash, the dye will stain, and ruin the light tee. You can combine light coloured items, and likewise dark items. Be cautious of yellow since almost every other colour will ruin it especially blue (think neon green).
Tie dye brought home from summer camp or school, we suggest following the same steps, maybe only letting it sit just a touch longer since its hard to know what kind of dye was used. If you are being asked to send in whites to dye, we suggest pre-washing and drying the items so that your kiddos can get a bright and vibrant design.
For tie dye items bought at a craft fair or online made by an artisan, we suggest washing it alone the first time, and then rinsing it to check if any of the dye continues to run. Most artisans will be careful and wash the items properly but mistakes do happen and it doesn’t hurt to air on the side of caution.
and finally washing fast fashion tie dye. Sometimes we all cave and grab some fun fast fashion tie dye like shein, zara or h&m, but this one you don’t have to worry about. Nearly all fast fashion brands do not tie dye the items but use a printed fabric for the design, meaning the dye will not fade. This might be a blessing but it also takes away the handmade, unique appeal. After all, who wants to show up to a party in the same tie dye hoodie as the next guy.
So, there you have it! Everything you need to know about how to rinse off tie dye after a craft. Now that you’re an expert on the subject, what will you tie dye this summer? We can’t wait to see your creations!
