Dye a Vivid Ombre Shirt

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I ombré dyed our duvet cover ages ago, and then I had about ten ladies over for an ombré dyeing party, yet I'm somehow only just now managing to scrape together a tutorial! I'll be sure to show you the duvet cover sometime soon, along with tips and tricks for dyeing such a large piece. In the meantime, you should try this. A couple of my ombré crafternoon party attendees dyed swimsuit coverups, and they turned out just as summery as can be. I definitely recommend a nice, bright lemon yellow for summer, and it fades light to dark really well!

If you have questions after you read through everything, leave 'em in the comments on this post, and I'll reply as soon as I can. There's a little bit of a learning curve to get a really nice, gradual fade, but it's fun to learn!

Step 1: What You Need

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Click here for links to where I purchase my dye and soda ash.

White or light-colored natural-fiber garment (cotton, rayon, hemp, silk, etc.)
Fiber reactive dye (Dharma Trading has an insane range of colors!)
Soda ash
Table salt
Disposable gloves
Marker
Ruler or tape measure (bonus if it's shaped like an owl)

super helpful tutorial! I've always wondered about how to get an ombre effect without just ending up with progressively darker stripes, as seems quite common. yours came out really nicely. i'm totally going to try this this weekend!

I've been wondering how to do this since I saw a dip-dye thermal on jacksthreads that I haven't been able to find anywhere else. I don't think Dip and Ombre dying are the same thing but I think they're fundamentally similar.

Wouldn't it be easier if you do it backwards? As in: add to the water the amount of dye that you would normally use to finish your shirt, and then dunk the bottom in, let it soak for a while, and then keep moving up the shirt. The longer exposure would make the bottom darker than the rest, which would get less time in the water.

FACEfun - I've actually tried it both ways, and I find the way I explained in this post much easier to control. I had friends over, and we tried the other way. It looked great on a couple items but was a lot more hit or miss. It's definitely a possibility. I've just had much better luck doing it the way I describe in the Instructable. Good point, though!

Nice ible! Thanks for sharing, I have so many on my list! sunshiine

So glad you like it, sunshiine! I've done our duvet cover the same way, and I think I might try some napkins soon, too. You can never have too many projects on the back burner, right? lol

Looks like you house is boarded up ! Sorry!

Thanks, but fortunately it's just an abandoned house nearby. Mine's doing just fine. :D

D'Arcy loves hers....I am waiting for another soccer/crafts get-together so I can make mine!

How about ombrÃ© jerseys? Which team can I talk into that so that we can design all their goods?! And thanks for the support, sir!

great shirt. interesting choice for background with the boarded up house

Thanks, L! There are unfortunately several boarded up houses around, but it makes for a unique locale for a photo, anyway.

This is great, thanks for the share.

You're welcome, Audrey. I'd love to see pictures if you try it out!