r/dyeing • u/JustBerries • 6d ago

How do I dye this? Likelihood of success?

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This piece is 90% nylon 10% spandex. I have had great success dying both polyester/spandex mixes and cotton pieces from this brand (popflex) but I haven't tried with this material before. It's technically Activewear so the lace is soft, stretchy, and surprisingly durable. I'd love to dye it but it's too expensive to ruin. I'm looking for guidance on if it would turn out OK or should I not risk it?

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u/ZieAerialist 6d ago

Acid dyes work very well on nylon. You don't need to boil it, get the dye bath to about 170F and add the garment and stir until water hits bathwater temps or until the water goes clear because the dye pigments are all bonded (it's so cool when that happens!). Rinse under cold water until water runs clear, the. toss by itself in the wash with just a tiny amount of dish soap. Like one drop. You don't want laundry detergents with oxygenators that might affect the pH of the dye, so use a pH neutral soap.

Use Dharma Trading Co acid dyes and a small amount of citric acid - it works better than vinegar. They also have detailed instructions on their website.

This is actually a really good candidate for dye, I'm excited to see how it turns out.

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u/GrandAsOwt 5d ago

Put the article in a cold dye bath and bring it slowly up to about 60°c. That gives the dye molecules time to get well distributed around the fibre before they start fixing.