There are a few points that you need to determine:

• Identify your fiber
• What is a fabric paint?
• What is a fabric Dye?
• Why doesn't the color stay when I use Rite dye

The most obtainable dye used by consumers in the United States is Rite Dye. This dye is a union dye which means it will adhere to several different fibers. The problem with this is it doesn't bond strong enough to any fiber, and fades quickly when washed.

I recommend purchasing a dye that is structured to your fiber. You might be thinking, "what about a fabric paint?" Fabric paints are different from fabric dyes. Paints adhere to the surface of your fabric by being mixed with a resin which acts as a binder. The resin is what makes the surface of the fabric stiff. Some paints are watered down to the point that you don't really notice much stiffness; nevertheless, paints never penetrate the fiber, but rather sit on top of the fabric, so the color will never be as deep and brillant as a dye would be. The best clue in knowing if a color agent is a dye or a paint is if the instructions say you can heat set the agent with the heat of your iron. This means the color agent is a paint.

Paints can be applyed to any fiber. Since they sit on top of the fiber, it doesn't matter what the fiber is in order for it to stick to the surface.

In order for dyes to make a permenant bond to the fiber they need to either be heat set into the fiber, or cured in the fiber by letting the fiber and color set over a period of time.

The best dye for Cellulose or Regenerated Cellulose fibers is Fiber Reactive dyes. These dyes come in several different series. The MX Procion dye is the most widely used because it is a cold water dye. The dye needs to be mixed with a soda ash, and salt mixture to help the dye bond to the fiber. The fiber is then wraped up and set aside to cure for up to 24 hours. Once this is done the fiber is rinsed in a sink of water and synthrapol (liquid soap).

The best dye for Protein fibers is Acid dyes. Acid dyes can also be used on nylon and spandex. Acid dyes are heat set by either placing the dye in a water bath with the fiber and cooking them over a stove, or steaming the fiber after the dye has been applied. White vinager, citric acid, or acidic acid is added to the dye bath, which acts as the bonding agent for this dye.

The best dye for Polyester, Nylon, Spandex, and acrylic is a dispersed dye. These dyes are hard to find over the counter, because they require large industral equipment that controls very high water temptures when dyeing.

We hope this answers most of your dying questions, but if it doesn't, don't hesitate to e-mail us at the address below.

Thanks again for surfing our site.

Nancy and Caryl Nelson