How long to soak shirts in soda ash

Rinse the tie-dyes thoroughly before putting in the machine. Leaving ties on, rinse under cold running water faucet, hose or shower , to stop the dye reaction. Next rinse in warm water while you untie the folds, keep rinsing until water runs fairly clear. Throw in the machine as soon as it is rinsed, running it through a full cycle. Don't wash more than the equivalent of about 8 adult size t-shirts at a time or the water gets too muddy.

You can use Milsoft professional fabric softener in the final rinse to make your tie-dyes super soft!. Fiber reactive dyes attach permanently to cellulose fibers using a covalent electron-sharing bond. These molecules carry a "chromophore" which absorb varying spectra of the light, allowing only certain spectra to reflect. Covalent bonding is one of the most basic and strongest types of chemical reactions.

The Soda Ash pre-soak raises the pH level of the garment or fabric to approximately Raising the pH level of the solution that the fabric or garment is soaked in raises the level of negative hydrogen ions in the dyeing environment. The chemical bonding process uses these ions in the reaction. Pre-soaking in Soda Ash fixer solution is what allows the fiber reactive dyes to work at room temperature. The reaction can also be assisted with heat. Some tie-dyers have had success with using baking soda and microwaving their dyed articles.

Since baking soda is a weaker alkali than Soda Ash, it must be accompanied by heat. Some people who are "chemically sensitive" choose to use this method. Does this also include not ironing after dyeing and waxing as a wax removal technique? Thanks for reading, Jane. No, after waxing and dyeing, that is not a problem. I have a friend who made some really large dyed panels and she did not rinse the excess dye out.

After a while, the excess dye turned into a powder and and flaked off the artwork. I am not sure it is good to breathe it. Kathy…what an awesome blog! I read through all the advice and I have a question. I am an art teacher that is putting together a fine arts festival with 8 schools. There will be 42 people adults and high school age that I would love to have do a tie die on shirts.

From reading your blog, I am thinking that I will need to pre-treat all the shirts with soda ash, then dry for them. What would you recommend to be the best dying for large groups? Do you think that would cause any problems with the lino print bleeding out on the wet dye background? I want to make sure the kids get a nice, clean lines print.

I believe the fabric printing ink has to stay on fabric 4 days before washing…is it alright to wait that long with the dye? Baking soda WILL work, but first add it to water, heat until it incorporates, sodium bicarbonate becomes Soda Ash at degrees Fahrenheit.

Hi Paula, and thanks for your questions. The problem I see with what you are asking is that it is two different processes that each need a different environment, which may be difficult to accomplish in the same day. Your shirts need to be plenty wet so that the liquid dyes will spread and do a decent job of depositing color. Then it needs to sit wet in a plastic bag or covered tub for hours for good color. After that, if you want to print without the image running, it needs to be dry. You would need to rinse them a couple of times, then wash and dry them.

My experience with the printing ink was that it washed out too easily without an extremely GOOD heat set OR there is a product that can be mixed with the ink which does not need the heat set and makes the ink permanent.

You may have some different inks with different requirements for permanency. Walmart and other places sell tie dye kits which have the soda ash already in the bottles with the dye powder. This makes it very easy to dye shirts with. We got their shirts wet did not need extra soda ash, I just used water , tied them, and squirted the dye on, then the shirts went in bags to do the wait time.

Hope this helps…you have your work cut out for you! I would plan for an evening printing session if you want to do it all in one day, or at least late afternoon. Hi Mandi, I have never heard anyone share this before about baking soda. What I do already takes plenty of time! Paula, one more thing about keeping the area clean…make sure all the kids work inside a dish tub or some sort of container that is big enough.

I use plastic shoeboxes for the bottles and cups of dye when I teach…too many accidents. Everything sits in the shoe boxes after mixing. The shoeboxes confine the dyes if someone knocks something over. I make sure to cover the tables with a light plastic drop cloth and the floors too. Everyone needs to wear gloves while handling the dyes.

Make sure there is rinse water in a tub or shoebox for everyone to get to. Just some tips to help minimize mess. We will be there all day, from 8am till 6pm. I am thinking that I can do the bottle mixing dye, placed in the bag you mentioned. Maybe they can keep it in the same bag to set up for hours. Then we can go to a lino lesson while it is setting. Go to lunch, come back and wash out. Then possibly use a heat gun to dry the section of the shirt that the printing is going to adhere to?

Kathy, I really appreciate your opinion, thank you so very much for your time on this. Those inks are thick. Good luck! Thanks for your advice and tricks of the trade! I always use freezer slide lock bags. You are most welcome…I have been teaching dyeing for a number of years. I have learned along the way what works the best and have taught it in carpeted areas and nice gymnasium floors.

I think I have seen it all. The shoebox idea came after a lady knocked over a whole cup of liquid dye in the gymnasium, then got it on her shoes. After that I said they are going to mix inside another container! Super idea. I love the small hints that make things easier! I will definitely go that way. Kathy, I am sorry to ask but…But with your vast knowledge in teaching this…Do you buy specific colors of dye when your teaching?

Or do you go with the standard primary colors that everyone can mix? Last question…I swear! LOL Thanks, Paula. Hi Paula 42 people is a lot of people. I would probably simplify this as much as possible. You could have a variety of colors and let them make choices…you would just need to have plenty of dye for that many people.

I might choose 10 colors or less not sure how much variety you want and have plenty on hand. Just let them choose which colors they want to use. The printers primaries are lemon yellow, fuchsia, and turquoise. Other variations that I have used before would be indigo, red and golden yellow. That is a lot of people! I am interested in dying silk. Can you give me more details about how much white vinegar is needed per gal of water? Joni, I generally use the vinegar full force, but I have read where others dilute it by half.

Are you thinking of trying soda ash for your next tie-dye project? If you do, let us know how it turned out by tagging us on social tulipcolorcrafts. Happy tie dyeing! Stay in the know about new tie-dye products, hot deals on kits, cool tie-dye looks and so much MORE! Home About Us. Shop Now. You have no items in your shopping cart.

Add warm water to mixing bowl. Some people add salt to a load of clothes to set the color, while some swear by the idea that adding distilled white vinegar to the wash or rinse water will set the dye.

Unfortunately, neither method will work reliably to prevent dye bleeding from clothes or fabrics that have already been commercially dyed. Soda ash occurs in many kinds of mineral waters and in mineral deposits of certain springs and lake brines. The richest and most commonly found source of soda ash is trona, a mix of sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, and water. Add salt if dyeing cotton or linen, or white vinegar for wool or silk; amount will depend on size of dye bath.

These additions help the fabric take the dye. How do you use soda ash before tie dying? Category: hobbies and interests painting. There are three choices, depending on what you're doing: add the soda ash before the dye , add it with the dye , or add it afterwards. Adding the soda ash before the dye is the usual method for tie - dye. First tie the garments, or leave them loose.

It is all right to put slightly damp garments into the presoak solution. What is a substitute for soda ash when tie dying? Does soda ash make tie dye brighter? Can you let tie dye sit too long? Is Borax soda ash? How long should tie dye soak?

How do you speed up the tie dye process? What does soda ash do for tie dye?