New here from Florida!

[signsintime]

My sister and I have recently become addicted to tie dying and we came across this site from one of the many links we googled, or youtube videos we watched, or blogs we read... we really don't remember how we got here, but just wanted to thank you all very VERY much for the abundance of information, and images you are sharing with the world.

A little about me...

My name is Jeri and I am a stay at home mom in her (ahem) *late* 40's (I can say that for another 6 months anyhow). I have been a graphic designer/artist my whole life and although I remember swirling some cloth and rubberbanding it before unceremoniously tossing in a bucket of RIT back in the late 60's, I never really considered tie dye such an artistic medium until my recent awakening at a Tie Dye Party my friend threw.

I now want to dye every white thing I see and all my spare money goes to blanks and dyes and instructional videos. I'm a junkie now, sure to move onto the harder stuff -- like Batik -- soon if someone doesn't do an intervention.

I don't have anything worth sharing yet, but just got back from Goodwill with a batch of helpless, unsuspecting victims that are washing now... soon to be white no more. If anything turns out worth a hoot, I'll share a pic or two.

I really want to try a Mandala and some of that dragon skin.

Anyhow, thanks for listening and a BIG THANKS for such a fantastic site. 

Jeri

[tiedyejudy]

Welcome, Jeri!  You're just a little bit younger than I was when I got bitten by the tie-dye bug, and I'm still 'sick' after 12+ years of dyeing!  And yep, I got into doing a little batik a few years back, using soy wax.  I never considered tie-dye an art form either, but have changed my mind... since no two items come out the same, that makes it 'original art' in my book!  Have fun, and do post pix when you get some... we love to share here.
Judy

[2D4]

Hi Jeri and Welcome!

I too was a graphic artist before tie dye and dabble a little bit still. (Mostly freebies now though....)

Glad you're here,

Jo

[Releaf]

Hi, Jeri!  Welcome to the forum, from a fellow Floridian.  I so know that feeling of going to Goodwill and heading straight for anything that's white.  Whenever I see people walking around in their breezy white cottons, I think "That would look so cool tie-dyed".

Good luck in your tie-dyeing adventures!

[signsintime]

Thanks ya'll.

We found the most AMAZING Goodwill just south of Jacksonville. Get this... they organized by COLOR! I didn't even have to search. Just head straight for the white section.

I have a bunch of the stuff I bought Saturday in the washer now after dying it yesterday morning. Some of the stuff looks quite promising. Can't wait to see it all dry.

I also used a 22x22 section of a sheet that I cut up for practicing new techniques. I attempted a mandala and even tho it's a cool looking pattern, I'm still trying to figure out how you get more control of the color.

Do most of you dye dry or damp? I think my stuff may have been a little too damp because the colors spread more than I had wanted them to.

Releaf, I saw a lady in a big white billowy skirt the other day and I wanted to scream "how can you walk around in that BLANK??!! You need to dye that!" LOL

[tiedyejudy]

Do most of you dye dry or damp? I think my stuff may have been a little too damp because the colors spread more than I had wanted them to.

I dye damp after pre-soaking in soda ash.  One way to achieve a little more control over the dye spread is to use a thickener, such as sodium alginate or Dharma Trading's Superclear.  The more you add, the less spreading, although you do want some.  But try one of those.  Note:  Mixing Sodium Alginate can be a little tricky!  Don't know where you are getting your supplies, but if from Pro-Chem, I believe they have a couple of types, and probably have good instructions for mixing. 

Judy

[deb]

Welcome!

Our Goodwill used to organize by color but now they don't seem to organize much at all, so it's not nearly as fulfilling a trip as it used to be - but I still stop in from time to time even though I still have a good couple dozen undyed things yet to take care of in the laundry room....and the rest of the basement....

[Releaf]

I know it's counter-intuitive, but if your stuff is too damp, your dye will spread less, not more.  We dye our stuff when it's just a little damp, if we can.  Too dry and the dyes will bead up on the surface; too wet and we get poor saturation.

Some folks swear by thickeners, but we've never used them.  We like for our colors to blend -- we're just very careful about which colors we put next to each other.

Mandalas take practice.  Make notes about what you're doing and then make adjustments.

Hmmm...just south of Jacksonville, eh?  I believe I'm giving advice to the competition.  So, when are you moving on to batik? 

[signsintime]

LOL, Releaf, you have no competition here! And the pointers are greatly appreciated.

I rented TieDye303 this past weekend. FYI, youtube.com has rentals (beta) now! For $4.99 I got that video for 72 hours. TieDye101 is a 7 day rental for the same price. I forget what 202 was.

Anyhow, I learned a lot from watching and hope to get a chance to test my knowledge this week with a fresh batch of shirts.

[Releaf]

Thanks for the information -- I had no idea youtube had rentals.  We were lucky to be able to study with someone whose work we admired.  Of course, he was so good that we tend to think his way is the only way, and we're always surprised to see how many different ways there are to do tie-dye.  It's fun to experiment and find your own style.  We learned a lot from our mentor, but we have our own color palettes.  I think that's where the art comes in -- anyone can learn to tie patterns, but choosing your color combinations is very individual.

We've been doing this for five years and we still get excited when it's time to unwrap things and see how they've turned out.  Rinsing day still feels like Christmas morning, every single time.

Here's wishing you many happy rinsing days!