Ombré Dip Dyeing

Ombré, also known as dip dyeing, is an effect usually achieved by hand dipping fabric in dye so that it gradually goes from light to dark, or sometimes from one color to another. Silk painters have tried blending progressive colors with brushes, but it is time consuming and never quite looks the same. Ombré is a laboriously hand dipped wonder with subtle gradations from top to bottom.

True Ombré is not as easy as it might seem. Know that professional dyers have wrestled with this technique for years to get amazing garments. Different fiber content, weave and weight of your fabric, as well as the individuality among dye colors will vary your results. Practice will also help you get the layers straight, even and more smoothly gradated.

Pre-wash fabric in hot borax and textile detergent. Rinse with cool water and leave wet.

Dye Bath:

Stick to the formula of 1 cup of salt and 1 oz washing soda per gallon of water.

For 1 yard of fabric:

5 Gallons warm water

2/3 cup Washing soda

5 cups Canning salt

4 tsp Calsolene oil

8 Tbsp Procion Dye

2 Tbsp Urea

13 gallon trash can

1 gallon pitcher

Yard stick

Pour washing soda, salt and calsolene oil into 5 gallons of warm water. Stir until thoroughly dissolved. Set aside.

Dye Mix

1) Mix urea in 2 cups of warm water.

2) Add Procion dye to urea water and mash into a thick slurry. A mini mixer with a submersion attachment will make this easier.

3) Strain through a fine mesh paint strainer. Deposit lumps back into the cup. Add a little of the dye and mash the lumps. Strain again. Continue until the lumps are gone. Set aside.

After Dye

1) For dark colors and reds, add 1 oz Methyl alcohol per pound of fabric to hot water before washing and soak for 30 minutes. For best results, water should have a pH of 7.

2) Rinse in cool water until it runs clear.

3) Wash in hot water with textile detergent. Dark colors and black may need a second washing.

4) Soak in cool water and Milsoft to soften the fabric after dyeing. Rinse with cool water.

5) Hang fabric to dry.

Preparation

1. The container for the dye bath needs to be a 13 gallon trash can or larger. For a smooth transition of color from light to dark wider than the width of the fabric you are dyeing and deep enough so you can hang it neatly in the dyebath and then slowly lift it out without having it too wrinkled at the bottom, which might cause it to dye unevenly.

2. Rig up a pulley system (from a ladder, tree branch, porch, etc– must be tall enough) to pull a measured portion of your fabric straight up and out of the dyebath at calculated intervals until you've gradually pulled the entire garment out of the dyebath. Put your fabric on a sturdy plastic hanger, wooden dowel or PVC pipe and attach that to a rope to keep the fabric as straight as possible. Have a way of tying the rope off so it is easy to undo and re-tye at each step. The fabric can be draped over the rod so long as water can move around it freely.

3. Use enough water that your fabric will be fairly relaxed in the bath. This means you will use more water per pound of fabric than usual.

4) Decide ahead of time how many layers you are going to have and how many inches each will be. Mark color layers on the fabric with glass head pins so you'll know how far to dip the fabric or raise the water level for each color. Place a yard stick inside the bucket to measure the dye level.

Single Color Dyeing

1) Hang the pre-washed wet fabric from the pulley inside the empty trash can so the fabric just touches the bottom and tie off the rope. Remove the fabric from the trash can, but leave it hanging.

2) Using a 1 gallon pitcher, transfer enough dye water from the 5 gallon bucket into the 13 gallon trash can to equal the depth in inches of the darkest color.

3) Add all of the dissolved dye and stir thoroughly.

4) Submerge the bottom of fabric into the dye bath. Let sit for 5 minutes.

5) Transfer more dye water to raise the bath to the next level. Let sit for another 5 minutes. Continue until you come to the last layer.

6) Pull fabric up out of the dye bath with the rope and tie off. Let the dye drip into the bath.

Two Tone

This method requires the raising of fabric out of the dye bath at intervals. You will use two colors and have 3 layers with this method. Begin with a solid fabric in a light color for the top layer. Choose a medium shade of the same hue for the second layer. Choose a dark shade of an analogous color for the third layer. Remember that the second color will always mix with the first so choose colors wisely--green over yellow, for instance.

1) Begin with dye water in the 5 gallon bucket.

2) Have each pre mixed dye color ready.

3) Add the first color to the dye bath and stir thoroughly.

4) Carefully lower your pre-washed wet fabric into the dye bath. If you want to keep a portion of the top white, as some do, don't lower it all the way.

5) Allow the fabric to sit in the dye for 5 minutes, then raise it to the desired interval.

6) Gently stir in the second dye color and let sit for 5 or 10 minutes.

7) Pull fabric up out of the dye bath with the rope and tie off. Let the dye drip into the bath.

Multi Color

This method is like the two tone method, except with more colors and layers. Generally, 4-5 colors are good. You want to use colors that naturally blend into one another like white to light yellow to bright yellow to orange to red to deep red. It also requires a bucket for each color.

1) Begin with dye water in as many 5 gallon buckets as you need.

2) Add one pre mixed dye color to each bucket and stir thoroughly.

4) Carefully lower your pre-washed wet fabric into the lightest dye bath. If you want to keep a portion of the top white, as some do, don't lower it all the way.

5) Allow the fabric to sit in the dye for 5 minutes, then remove it. Let the dye drip into the bath. Rinse with cool water.

6) Lower the fabric into the second dye color at an interval from the first and let sit for 5 minutes, then remove it. Let the dye drip into the bath. Rinse with cool water.

7) Continue until you come to the last color.