hii um as an aspiring diy-er i've come to ask- is there a dye process you recommend for denim? i tried RIT dye but it didn't get as dark as i was hoping for my last project and you seemed like you'd know! thank you for being such a positive force in the diy sphere :]
Aww thank u!!! Tbh I’ve not dyed much denim in my time (mostly thin cotton and stuff), however, I know the RIT website has some incredibly detailed infographics and lists on making sure dye goes on as well as possible! , like they have ‘dye recipies’ and things for specific colours/getting things extra dark :-) (I think they also make denim specific dyes, but most of them are blue from what I remember…may have changed since I last checked though)
Personally, I’ve never been great at dying clothes , a lot of things I’ve attempted to dye black end up more a dark purple or blue or grey (but I’m usually happy as long as it’s A dark colour)
I’d also ask, did you use synthetic dye or all purpose ? If the denim was stretchy / had some poly blend or something in it, using all purpose may have not been as effective as synthetic (or vice versa …) (also if it was synthetic , you need it to stay hot for the entire dye process , so maybe that had something to do with it? And I know you have to add either salt or vinager to help dye set in (depending on if synethtic or all purpose….)
I’d do some perusing on the rit website if I were you! Maybe do a double dye. But also I’d say, at least from my experience, dye can be kind of unpredictable and the outcome is rarely ‘exactly what I pictured would happen’ according to the bottle (sorry if that’s not much help 😅)
Oh! Just checked website and they have an article on dying denim/jeans specifically ! This could potentially be helpful https://www.ritdye.com/instructions/how-to-dye-jeans/
Do you love the fit of a pair of old jeans but wish you could update the color? Pretty much everyone does. You only need a few supplies to m
(Also if this is about it darkening ‘already-black’ denim, Ive heard some folks dye their jeans with black coffee too make them more black again, haven’t tried this myself but it’s a method I’ve heard of for ‘refreshing denim’ so perhaps that’s a route you could explore as well… (though I also think it washes out quick/may not be great for the fabric long term, and the coffee might be more expensive than the dye…)…on that note, Rit has some ‘back to black’ dye that I think is specifically made for reviving washed out black clothes . Could be an option
Best of luck!!! Thank you for your kind words :-)
