The Art of Tie Dyeing

If you are interested in tie dyeing, this post will help you learn the BEST way to do it and I will also give you information on how to order all the right materials. I’ve been a bit obsessed with the art of tie dyeing for awhile, but I’ve always just bought the little packages you can get at Wal-Mart (which are great, by the way. They come with awesome dye colors and tutorials on how to create all the cool designs. Definitely great for beginners.) But I’m striving to be as good as Ben Smith’s mother, Mrs. Kathryn Smith, someday. Gareth has shirts, pillow cases and tapestries that she has created and they are all so beautiful. (Picture to the left.) I know it takes practice and patience, but one day I hope to have a tie dye station in my home and to sell them… maybe even at festivals. I’ve been doing some research and I thought I would share it with all of you just in case you are interested in tie dyeing too! Tie dyeing is great because no matter what… even if you “mess up”, it still looks cool! Okay, so first thing’s first – I found a website: http://howtotiedye.net that gives tons of information on tie-dyeing using Soda Ash Water. This is what makes the colors look like the picture above – I’m not going to give a tutorial, because the website gives an awesome tutorial on how to dip, mix and apply dye, and everything else you need to know. They also tell you how to tie dye peace signs and other designs. Next, you need to purchase the materials. You can buy an already-prepared tie dye kit here: http://www.madebyhippies.com/tiedyekit/.  OR I know a girl in Norman, Carmen Bellis, who gives Tie Dye lessons, and you can purchase your materials through her. She has an enormous list of reactive dye colors (all colors are in pictures below). You can also order the Soda Ash Water (one – two pounds) for $2.10, Urea (one – two pounds) for $3.10, rubber bands and gloves for $2.00, and the dye color is $3.80 per 2 oz. of color. It costs .12 cents for one 16 ounce bottle. She suggests seven dies, seven bottles, one lb. of urea and soda ash, and one box of rubber bands and rubber gloves. This would cost $34.64 all together not including the teachers fee which is $30.00 an hour – of course this would be a lot cheaper if you could get your friends to do it with you to split the cost. If you are interested in taking lessons from her and/or purchasing materials through her, you can contact her through her website, which is http://tyedyecreations.vpweb.com/default.html. I hope this was helpful. Happy tie dyeing!