Dye jeans
This gives your jeans a pop of color!
© mongione / Shutterstock
Your favorite jeans are faded? No problem! Here’s how to re-dye a pair of jeans – with or without a washing machine!
A pair of jeans usually accompanies us for years – no wonder that after a while the color no longer looks quite as fresh. It doesn’t have to be thrown away for that reason! Coloring new instead of buying new is the motto and that not only protects the environment, but also your wallet!
Dyeing jeans: you have to pay attention to that
- You can either freshen up the color of jeans or you can dye the jeans darker. However, dying the jeans lighter does not work.
- Fabric dye and jeans color will mix if they are different: For example, if you dye yellow jeans with turquoise, you will get a green shade as a result.
- The zipper and the seams are mostly made of synthetic fibers that don’t take on color!
- If you want to dye dark or black jeans, you have to bleach them first – you can do this with a bleach, for example.
- Caution: After dyeing, the jeans can still shed color in the next few washes: As an indicator that the jeans are still staining, you can add an old white towel to the first wash – if it discolours, you should wash the jeans for the next two to three washes better wash separately.
- Only dye clean jeans that have not been previously washed with fabric softener.
Dyeing jeans – that’s how it works
Dyeing jeans in the washing machine
advantage:
Disadvantage:
- You cannot control the dye level yourself while the machine is running.
- Ink residues can be deposited in the machine – an additional wash cycle afterwards is therefore recommended!
Instructions:
- Weigh your jeans or the appropriate number of pants you want to dye when dry.
- Textile dyes are available in different shades on the market. A dosing aid is given on the textile dye for how many grams of fabric the respective dye is suitable. If you want to dye several pairs of jeans, you will either have to buy several packs of fabric dye or you will get a weaker color result.
- Put the clean, slightly damp jeans in the washing machine and follow the manufacturer’s instructions for the dyeing process. Note that the temperature setting for the dye needs to be compatible with the washing temperature of your jeans. Most often, the dyeing temperature is 40 degrees. Choose a program without prewash. After 5 minutes, add the color via the detergent drawer and then top up with 1 liter of water.
- After dyeing, wash the jeans with a mild detergent.
- The jeans then have to dry in the fresh air. Avoid the tumble dryer! Slow drying in the fresh air ensures that the color is better absorbed by the fabric.
- Run the washing machine without any laundry to get rid of any leftover dye.
Tip: Instead of re-dyeing your jeans, sometimes applying a color touch-up or redecoration will do the trick.
Dye jeans in a bowl
Advantage:
- You can control the dyeing process yourself.
Disadvantage:
- You must protect your clothes with an apron and your hands with household gloves.
Instructions:
- Use a large bowl that can hold at least 15L of water.
- Protect the surface from paint splashes as well as your clothes and hands.
- Heat water to 60 degrees. If you don’t have a kitchen thermometer, you can mix 2/3 boiling water with 1/3 cold water.
- Pour the water into the bowl.
- Dose the fabric dye according to the weight of your jeans.
- Pour the paint into the water bath.
- It may be necessary to add coloring salt – depending on the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Wet your jeans with warm water and then wring them out. Put them in the dye bath immediately afterwards.
- Dip the jeans in the dye bath and let them dye there for an hour. Keep stirring with a stick so that the paint is evenly distributed, otherwise spots could appear.
- Then rinse the pants thoroughly with cold water.
- The jeans must then be washed in the washing machine at 40 degrees. Use a mild detergent. If necessary, place the pants in a fixing bath for 15 minutes to fix the color.
- Allow the pants to air dry.
Looking for more creative techniques for your clothes? Here you will find useful information and tips on the subject of dyeing clothes. Here you can find out everything about batik. And here we explain how to print fabrics with lavender print.