Gloves

[ecilA]

I like to use an exam type glove, heavier gloves tend to reduce the amount of feel I have, they are clumsy.

I had to stop using the latex though and ended up with a box of purple nitriles and I'm hooked.

I worry about the waste of the process, have the handy bottle of baby powder at the ready to make easier putting on a pair that's been used.  But the latex ripped pretty quickly, three wearings and done, plus my fingers were stained, they were highly susceptible to pinprick holes that made moot their use.

The purples gloves?  No need for powder!  I dry my hands in glove, pull them off flipping inside out, hang them up.  When I return to dyeing the inside is dry (it's hot, my hands sweat) and I flip them and blow quickly into each to expand the fingers.  These things are tough, they can be reworn over and over with no damage to the glove.  No pinprick holes, no randomly dye stained fingers.

(in no way affiliated with the glove makers, just thought I'd share my pleasure with this product)

[ktaltre]

OK,
What brand are the purple nitrile gloves? Where does one acquire them?
I use nitrile gloves too, but mine are blue. The last box (100) I got was from Gempler's (on the web). I've never seen purple nitriles.
k. taltre

[ecilA]

They are a Kimberly-Clark product, the label also says "Safeskin" (so they may be called Safeskin Purple Nitrile Gloves).

How are the blue ones?

[pburch]

I think that high quality latex gloves are as good as nitrile ones. The problem is finding which brands are high quality. (And of course, once you've found your perfect nitrile gloves, why look further?)

Avoid Walgreens brand latex gloves, which had an amazing failure rate for me. The ones my husband then got at the hardward store are much better, but I'm not going to recommend them based on only one box.

Paula

[ecilA]

I meant to include that I purchased the gloves at the local big box, assuming they are fairly common.

I have to say that I wish I'd never used the latex gloves, or maybe never should have used the latex gloves with powder.  This may be a broad assumption but I seem to have developed an allergy to latex and think that having avoided it would have been better, but that's why I started looking at other types of gloves. 

The nitriles are more expensive (per pair) but cheaper when you consider how reusable they are, a box lasts longer for me than any of the latex I tried in the past.

[ktaltre]

I get a fairly cheap, lightweight nitrile glove in a box of a hundred - I have to use baby powder to get them on, as I like them tight. Sometimes a pair will last several sessions and then they rip, but they rip while putting them on, so no dyed hands.
That's an advantage of nitrile opposed to latex, they tear when stressed or punctured so you know immediately.

Gempler's has several weights and all kinds of nitrile gloves - thick ones, thin ones - if you want to take a look:
http://www.gemplers.com/search.aspx?HKW=nitrile%20gloves

You are right, Paula, about latex being as good as nitrile
I use nitrile gloves because I'm allergic to latex, I get a nice itchy rash on my hands with latex, very gross.

I just looked at that brand of purple nitrile gloves on Amazon - they seem to be the same as the blue ones, in boxes of a hundred.
I guess that brand is purple.
Thanks for the brand info.
k. taltre

[ecilA]

I didn't know if the different colors indicated different weights or something.  But I will say that I was crowing over the purple ones because they will last for days and days, oh and the texture doesn't seem to degrade, the latex ended up getting tacky pretty fast and the vinyl ones I had tried got weird pretty fast and made my hands sweat more than the others I'd tried.

editing to add: I'd be interested in what kind of rate of allergy there is in the dyeing population.  I know that in healthcare it is common.  So I'm attributing the development of the allergy to contact.  I did some research after my problems started and at the least would say that anyone with a ragweed allergy should avoid latex, the allergies are connected.

[pburch]

The point about avoiding cheap latex gloves to prevent latex allergies is a good one. Latex allergies have increased in frequency since the fear of HIV increased demand for disposable latex gloves, which led to the introduction of lower quality gloves. Poor quality cheap latex gloves are more likely to contain high levels of allergen than higher quality gloves.

Safeskin Purple Nitrile Gloves come in size extra-small, as well (I found them on Amazon), which would be idea for children's tie-dyeing projects.

Paula

[silverlil]

I found my purple nitrile gloves at WallyWorld in the pharmacy section; they remind me of "Dexter's Laboratory".  We use both latex and nitrile gloves in the lab in which I work.  The nitrile doesn't have as much stretch as the latex, and it doesn't give me as much grip, but it lasts longer.  I have also used Playtex type gloves--with those, I slather a lot of hand cream on before donning them, and rinse them out afterwards.  The thin plastic gloves included in those mass-produced tiedye kits are a joke.  Argh!

Aside to Paula--could your micropipette mandala be done with fabric pens?  I'm going to preteen camp in 10 days, and we have pillowcases and tshirts for the kids to decorate.  It would have to be simplified (and heat-set by an adult), but I'd like to get permission to use your idea before I run with it. Thanks!

Silverlil

[steve]

I use latex disposables, nitrile dish washing sized gloves found in hardware departments and dyers' gloves.

I haven't had any problem with allergies in spite of my ragweed wheezes and sneezes, but I don't use latex very often.

I really like dyers gloves the best--They have surprisingly good control in spite of the appearance. I don't do any micro-pipetting or anything else that requires super fine motor control. They are also very comfortable. The actually go up over your elbows and have elastic at the cuff.

I only use gloves when applying dye, removing fabric from soda soak (something I do less and less of), and rinsing fabric.

Attached is a pic--not the best. They can be found at ProChem

[pburch]

Aside to Paula--could your micropipette mandala be done with fabric pens?  I'm going to preteen camp in 10 days, and we have pillowcases and tshirts for the kids to decorate.  It would have to be simplified (and heat-set by an adult), but I'd like to get permission to use your idea before I run with it.

You certainly may! The only thing I feel I own about that technique are the actual images of mandalas I've made with it. It's the kind of idea that is obvious enough to be invented in multiple places at once. Have fun with it, and let us see pictures afterwards if possible!

Paula

[Jeau]

I really like dyers gloves the best--They have surprisingly good control in spite of the appearance. I don't do any micro-pipetting or anything else that requires super fine motor control. They are also very comfortable. The actually go up over your elbows and have elastic at the cuff.

I only use gloves when applying dye, removing fabric from soda soak (something I do less and less of), and rinsing fabric.

I have a pair of these too.  The elastic cuff, while plenty tight, doesn't keep the gloves on very well...guess I need to work on those biceps!    What I did was attach a strap to the top of one glove, which then goes up across the front of my shoulder, behind my neck, and across the front of my other shoulder, where it's attached to the other glove.  The strap is permanently fastened to the gloves, so there's no messing with it.  It's also handy for hanging them when I'm finished.  I removed the elastic at both cuffs, so my arms don't get squeezed and don't overheat.  No more pulling up the gloves, and no more discomfort.  I like the Dyer's Gloves because I can reach all the way into a bucket o' dye (or fixer) without worrying, and I'm not throwing wasted gloves into a landfill. 

[silverlil]

One thing you need to know about latex and nitrile gloves is that they aren't very good for handling most organic solvents: toluene, acetone, and the like (isopropyl alcohol is OK, though). The strap idea for the dyer's gloves is very good--it's kind of like the childrens' mittens with the strap that goes through the coat sleeves, isn't it?

If I can round up someone with a digital camera to snap some shots of us at preteen camp making our mandala tshirts, I will try to send some pics.  Maybe I'll get some Tee Juice (TM) markers--they make big splots of color.  Next year, I'm aiming for some real tiedye action. We could do it out under the tall Texas pines and have a blast!!! (and try not to wash the dye into Lake Tomahawk)

Happy Dyeing, y'all!  Silverlil

[Kevin]

I found some blue nitriles at Harbor Freight Tools. $7 a box of 100. These work way better than the latex gloves I had been using! They don't leak. Die doesn't stuck to them at all, unlike the latex. And they are so tough that I can rinse them off and reuse them over and over. Still has good dexterity like the latex though! Best $7 I ever spent!