Updating your wardrobe for spring doesn’t mean dropping a bundle on brand new brightly colored clothes. You can add a splash of color to your closet by channeling your inner Martha Stewart and turning those neutral winter pieces into bright favorites for just a few dollars by dying them yourself.
You can purchase fabric dye at any craft store in any color of the rainbow. I have found that RIT dye works best, and you can get it at your local grocery store for under $3 a box. Pick your favorite vibrant shades, some rubber gloves so you don’t ruin your manicure, and you’re good to go.
Head to your closet and find your project pieces. They should be light colored, like white, beige, or pastels, and cotton or cotton blends, as these hold onto dye the best. You can even get more life out of clothes that you never thought you could wear again, like clothes with stains or whites that can no longer pass for white. Shirts, skirts, dresses, jeans- they all work, so use them all.
Follow the directions on the dye box for the dye to water ratio and any special instructions (all dyes are different, so depending on your brand, directions will vary.)
Submerging the clothing in a bucket of dye for a few minutes is all you need to do to turn a basic into a bold statement, but don’t stop there- get creative.
Tie dye is back, so twist, fold and rubberband your clothes to get the classic design. Try to stay away from Pink Floyd-style multi-colored tie dye patterns and stick with colors in the same family. A while back I tie dyed some light gray jeans with black dye and they turned out awesome, or you can dye a light pink dress with darker pink dye for a nice contrast.
Batiking is for more advanced dye-it-yourselfers, but gives you more freedom over your design. Pick up batiking wax, or mix beeswax with parafin wax, and use a paintbrush to draw designs on your clothes with melted wax. When it dries, you can dye the clothing. The wax will resist the dye where it is painted leaving your design in tact. Then boil out or iron out the wax, wash and wear. Research batiking for specific instructions- if wax is heated too high it can put off toxic fumes.
Sure, dying saves you money on new clothes, but it also allows you to give your old clothes a bright touch that is uniquely you. Add a punch of DIY color that will get you noticed, and have you saying, “Oh, this old thing?”
