Tie Dye Instructions for Spiral Mickey Shirt

[whamma]

Shirts are unwrapped, rinsed-rinsed-rinsed. The blue Mickey head looked like a big blue blob--thank goodness for the bleach pen! The bleach penned shirts are in the wash now. I'll try to post the finished product when they are dry. Colors turned out okay--a lot of white on some of the shirts--esp. the fronts but the backs were well covered. Oh well. Next time I won't use so much die on the head part. I thought for sure I'd done great dental floss stiching and rubber banded like crazy--but I could see the dye leaking under the plastic bag & rubber bands as I was dying the rest of the shirt. Oops.

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

I know this is a little off topic from tie dye, but I used a bleach pen this weekend on store bought colored shirts, and they came out great! I'll post pics this week, but I highly recommend it as a quick and easy way to Mickeyfy a shirt. I'll be using them for embarkation day (DIS green color) on our upcoming cruise.

Next up is the next round of tie dyes, which I'll be doing with floss for the first time. I was previously a resist girl all the way, but am excited to try the floss.

Does anyone know what happens if you use mint floss? I can't find non-mint floss anywhere!

 

[GoofyWalker]

I know this is a little off topic from tie dye, but I used a bleach pen this weekend on store bought colored shirts, and they came out great! I'll post pics this week, but I highly recommend it as a quick and easy way to Mickeyfy a shirt. I'll be using them for embarkation day (DIS green color) on our upcoming cruise.

Next up is the next round of tie dyes, which I'll be doing with floss for the first time. I was previously a resist girl all the way, but am excited to try the floss.

Does anyone know what happens if you use mint floss? I can't find non-mint floss anywhere!

MarcyIn FL,

Mint floss will work fine. I have used it when I have run out of plain. There was no bleeding of green color, if that is what you are worried about. It is even a bit easier to see when removing. Once I was snipping white floss (which can look almost clear amidst the folds of shirt) on a very thin WalMart teen tee, and I snipped a piece of shirt instead.

GoofyWalker

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

MarcyIn FL,

Mint floss will work fine. I have used it when I have run out of plain. There was no bleeding of green color, if that is what you are worried about. It is even a bit easier to see when removing. Once I was snipping white floss (which can look almost clear amidst the folds of shirt) on a very thin WalMart teen tee, and I snipped a piece of shirt instead.

GoofyWalker

Thanks! The floss I bought is white, but I wasn't sure if the mint would be an issue. If nothing else, we'll be minty fresh, I guess!

 

[whamma]

Here are my shirts! Front...

[/IMG]
And back....

[/IMG]

That blue dye (Jacquard) is really tough! I left the bleach on about 20 minutes and still only really got the outline to "yellow" not back to white like the shirt is. Also, I used straight Clorox bleach that I painted on with a paint brush--the bleach pen wasn't strong enough for the blue dye. The Clorox bleach was the "high efficiency" which is a little thicker and supposed to be more resistant to splattering. The shirts were also damp so that helped the bleach "bleed"--which I liked.

I think the backs turned out cool. Used too much dye on the heads---thank goodness for bleach! Looking for opinions, should I try to bleach again to make the outlines bigger and whiter???

 

[jenn-]

Here are my shirts! Front...

[/IMG]
And back....

[/IMG]

That blue dye (Jacquard) is really tough! I left the bleach on about 20 minutes and still only really got the outline to "yellow" not back to white like the shirt is. Also, I used straight Clorox bleach that I painted on with a paint brush--the bleach pen wasn't strong enough for the blue dye. The Clorox bleach was the "high efficiency" which is a little thicker and supposed to be more resistant to splattering. The shirts were also damp so that helped the bleach "bleed"--which I liked.

I think the backs turned out cool. Used too much dye on the heads---thank goodness for bleach! Looking for opinions, should I try to bleach again to make the outlines bigger and whiter???

I think they turned out great with the bleach save. Looking at the photo I think the Mickey pops out enough without another go, but you can see them in person. I got a "Bedazzler" to hopefully save DD's. Wish me luck on that.

 

[jenn-]

My second batch is tie dying now . The kit said that the dye was only good for 45 minutes before it started to lose strength, so I tie dyed some of my DS2's white underwear with the leftover for DS1 to wear . DS2 wears white tighties that have gotten too tight and DS1 wears the colored underwear. Keeps me sane when sorting undies. I will have to post a picture if they turn out okay.

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

My second batch is tie dying now . The kit said that the dye was only good for 45 minutes before it started to lose strength, so I tie dyed some of my DS2's white underwear with the leftover for DS1 to wear . DS2 wears white tighties that have gotten too tight and DS1 wears the colored underwear. Keeps me sane when sorting undies. I will have to post a picture if they turn out okay.

I always tie dye underwear, socks and old t-shirts with leftover dye -- those pieces are some of my kids' favorites. And I hate to date myself, but back in the day, we tie dyed clothes because they had gotten too dingy or stained -- we never dyed new white shirts! My second daughter doesn't yet realize that she has so many colorful shirts because I've dyed her big sister's hand-me-downs to cover up the food and other stains!

 

[lklasing]

To Whamma (whose shirts look great!!) or anyone else who has had to bleach out the mickey outline: I'm looking at having to do the same thing tomorrow. Do y'all think the bleach pen is better, or straight Clorox (with a paintbrush, I guess?)?

I was worried about burning a hole in the fabric with just clorox - how long would you leave it on? How do you wash it out? (I guess the same questions apply with the bleach pen).

Also, what do you put between the front and back to ensure it doesn't bleed through?

Finally, do you do it while the shirt is wet or dry? Does it matter?

TIA for any tips!!

Leslie

 

[jenn-]

To Whamma (whose shirts look great!!) or anyone else who has had to bleach out the mickey outline: I'm looking at having to do the same thing tomorrow. Do y'all think the bleach pen is better, or straight Clorox (with a paintbrush, I guess?)?

I was worried about burning a hole in the fabric with just clorox - how long would you leave it on? How do you wash it out? (I guess the same questions apply with the bleach pen).

Also, what do you put between the front and back to ensure it doesn't bleed through?

Finally, do you do it while the shirt is wet or dry? Does it matter?

TIA for any tips!!

Leslie

You just saved me a lot of typing, I was just getting on this morning to ask all these questions... lol. I hope one of the experienced ones answer before I have to head out the door this morning.

 

[whamma]

I can only answer from my experience but here goes...

Beach pen vs. straight bleach--I think this will depend on what color you are bleaching. I found the blue really "tough" so the bleach pen wasn't strong enough--unless I'd left it on for a LONG time, I suppose. I left my bleach "painting" on about 15-20 minutes--I kept watching it and dabbing a little more on in areas I thought needed it. Also, the "thicker" no splash bleach (Clorox High Efficiency) was easy to paint on--I would think thinner, watery bleach might be more prone to spot on other areas. I just used a paper plate to hold my bleach while I "painted".

Wet vs. dry app of the bleach--my shirts were wet/damp. I wanted mine to "bleed" a bit--I think on dry shirts the lines might be more defined (but who knows). A lot will depend on the fabric. Although all of my shirts were 100% cotton--some of them were different brands and thicknesses so they reacted somewhat differently to the dye and bleach. I'd just keep an eye on them.

Backing while bleaching--I used pieces of cardboard to put inside the shirt to protect the back from getting bleached. I had cardboard for each shirt so I could paint the bleach on one then move on to the next, etc. etc.

Then I just kept an eye on the shirts. You will be able to see if the bleach is acting quickly or slowly so once it's to the point you want, take the backing out and toss them in the washing machine. I had the washing machine already full of water and ready to go with a little detergent--so as soon as I put the shirt in the bleach was getting rinsed--rather than risk having the bleached parts touch other areas of the shirt while the machine was filling with water.

Another thing I did--I had another shirt that I'd tie dyed at the same time and I did a "test" on the seam of the shirt as to whether to use the bleach pen of bleach painting. I could tell that bleach pen was going to be a really slow process--I just put a little on the edge then rinsed it out. You could do this too on a bottom or edge of a seam if you wanted to check exactly what will work best for your shirts.

Hope those answers help!

 

[Tinker_]

I know this is a little off topic from tie dye, but I used a bleach pen this weekend on store bought colored shirts, and they came out great! I'll post pics this week, but I highly recommend it as a quick and easy way to Mickeyfy a shirt. I'll be using them for embarkation day (DIS green color) on our upcoming cruise.

Next up is the next round of tie dyes, which I'll be doing with floss for the first time. I was previously a resist girl all the way, but am excited to try the floss.

Does anyone know what happens if you use mint floss? I can't find non-mint floss anywhere!

I kinda like using mint myself!! lol, smells yummy!!

Here are my shirts! Front...
That blue dye (Jacquard) is really tough! I left the bleach on about 20 minutes and still only really got the outline to "yellow" not back to white like the shirt is. Also, I used straight Clorox bleach that I painted on with a paint brush--the bleach pen wasn't strong enough for the blue dye. The Clorox bleach was the "high efficiency" which is a little thicker and supposed to be more resistant to splattering. The shirts were also damp so that helped the bleach "bleed"--which I liked.

I think the backs turned out cool. Used too much dye on the heads---thank goodness for bleach! Looking for opinions, should I try to bleach again to make the outlines bigger and whiter???

I think they look great!!! The MM heads are nice and visable! I wouldnt risk touching up something that already looks great!!

My second batch is tie dying now . The kit said that the dye was only good for 45 minutes before it started to lose strength, so I tie dyed some of my DS2's white underwear with the leftover for DS1 to wear . DS2 wears white tighties that have gotten too tight and DS1 wears the colored underwear. Keeps me sane when sorting undies. I will have to post a picture if they turn out okay.

You just gave me a great potty training idea!

I always tie dye underwear, socks and old t-shirts with leftover dye -- those pieces are some of my kids' favorites. And I hate to date myself, but back in the day, we tie dyed clothes because they had gotten too dingy or stained -- we never dyed new white shirts! My second daughter doesn't yet realize that she has so many colorful shirts because I've dyed her big sister's hand-me-downs to cover up the food and other stains!

Another great idea! lol

You just saved me a lot of typing, I was just getting on this morning to ask all these questions... lol. I hope one of the experienced ones answer before I have to head out the door this morning.

I always put my bleach in a shotglass (Uh... I mean tooth pick holder..) and use a thin pain brush to brush it on. I had one pen leave a huge blob once on a really awesome shirt, so I decided a brush would be more controlable. I dont water the bleach down, however some people do. I also have a big stack of unused WM bags that a lay in between layers.

I have 12 shirts processing today, and about 10 more to sew and get going by tonight! I have cut my right pointer finger thanks to pulling dental floss too tight! OW!

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

To Whamma (whose shirts look great!!) or anyone else who has had to bleach out the mickey outline: I'm looking at having to do the same thing tomorrow. Do y'all think the bleach pen is better, or straight Clorox (with a paintbrush, I guess?)?

I was worried about burning a hole in the fabric with just clorox - how long would you leave it on? How do you wash it out? (I guess the same questions apply with the bleach pen).

Also, what do you put between the front and back to ensure it doesn't bleed through?

Finally, do you do it while the shirt is wet or dry? Does it matter?

TIA for any tips!!

Leslie

I found the bleach pen to be difficult to work with and will use straight bleach next time. Plus, for $2.50, the bleach pen only did 4 shirts, which was annoying.

That being said, here's what I did:

-- washed the shirts in the washer (they were new)
-- when they were still wet, I laid them out on the table and put a plastic Target bag in between the layers
-- I varied the time I left the bleach on, and it will vary depending on the shirt. I was using 50/50 blend colored shirts rather than dyed ones. After some trial and error, 15 minutes worked well
-- I ran the bleached shirts under water and used my hand to rub off the bleach and then rinsed them well
-- I let them dry overnight and then ran them through the cold water cycle in the washer

The interesting thing is that they came out two toned with the bleach. I assume it's because I didn't leave the bleach on as long as I should have, but I was worried about burning a hole in the fabric. I actually like the two tone, but I'm sure part of that was that the shirts were a poly blend.

i have 12 shirts processing today, and about 10 more to sew and get going by tonight! I have cut my right pointer finger thanks to pulling dental floss too tight! Ow!

YOWCH!

 

[lklasing]

Thanks for the bleaching tips, everyone! I'm printing them all out and will be giving it a try tonight. I'll try to get pictures on if they end up worthy!

 

[jenn-]

Okay here are the shirts that got washed out today plus the one I "blinged" for DD. I think I am still going to try the bleach thing, but I am really paranoid about completely messing up the shirts. Anyways here they are.
DD's Bling

DH's front

DH's back

DS1

DS2

DS3

the boys' backs

and the highly anticipated underwear!

I also got to wash out my spiral spray painted Mickey shirts and the results will be on my PTR in a few hours after the kids go to bed. I think they turned out pretty neat, so stop by and check them out.

 

[jenn-]

Does anyone know if it is possible to use Tulip's Color Block with tie dye? I was thinking of trying a combination of the swirly head Mickey and tie dying, but I didn't know if the color block worked that way or if it would only block color from the spray on style of coloring. Any advice or experience?

 

[GoofyWalker]

Here are my shirts! Front...

[/IMG]

Whamma,
Love 'em! The bright splashes of color remind me of confetti--very festive!!
GoofyWalker

 

[GoofyWalker]

Does anyone know if it is possible to use Tulip's Color Block with tie dye? I was thinking of trying a combination of the swirly head Mickey and tie dying, but I didn't know if the color block worked that way or if it would only block color from the spray on style of coloring. Any advice or experience?

Jenn,

I have not used the color block yet. But the color block is water soluble. If you look a few pages back at the pictures, it seems if you use the color block in combination with tie dye you end up with a "distressed" image, there the dye kind of bleeds under the color block in places, or perhaps partially disolves it. I like the look, but it is NOT a sharp image.

Waaay back, where someone used fabric paint to apply a Tink silhouette and a Stitch silhouette, it seems the fabric paint worked better as a block with the tie dye.

JMO, and again, I have not actually done either of these techniques to offer up actual experience.



GoofyWalker

 

[GoofyWalker]

Hi,

Just wanted to let everyone know that my Michaels has started to carry 100% cotton t-shirts for tie dyeing.

Unfortunately, they only come in a 3-pack. But for those with only a Michaels close by, or those wanting to do some last minute tie dyeing, at least there is now an easy option available. I think the regular price is a pack of 3 for $9.99. There is both a crew-neck and a v-neck style (yeah! )

GoofyWalker

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

Does anyone know if it is possible to use Tulip's Color Block with tie dye? I was thinking of trying a combination of the swirly head Mickey and tie dying, but I didn't know if the color block worked that way or if it would only block color from the spray on style of coloring. Any advice or experience?

I've used a resist (but not Tulip) to make tie dyes and they come out great, but not as crisp as the floss.