Denim Colour Refresh
Easily darken or lighten the existing colour of your blue jeans. To lighten you can use Colour Remover and to darken or change the colour you can use equal parts black and navy blue Tintex Fabric Dye.
Materials:
- Colour Remover (if you are lightening the colour)
- Tintex Fabric Dye of choice (if you are darkening the colour)
- Jeans or denim clothing/fabric
- Plastic cover to protect workspace
- Rubber or plastic gloves
- Spoon
- Measuring cup
- Plastic bucket or container
- Kettle or microwave to heat water
- Paper towel (optional for testing dye colour)
To Lighten Colour:
- Follow the instructions for using Colour Remover if you want to lighten the colour of the denim. Sometimes just lightening the colour a few shades will make the jeans or denim look different enough without having to dye.
To Dye Fabric:
- Protect work area with plastic & wear rubber gloves.
- Wet the jeans and squeeze out excess water.
- Fill bucket with the hottest water available (use kettle or microwave to heat water).
- Mix equal parts black and navy Tintex in two cups of hot water, stirring until completely dissolved (use the dye colour guide to create a custom hue), test colour on a paper towel and adjust intensity as needed. Darker colours use double the usual amount of Tintex for dry fabric weight and fabric content.
- Add the dye solution to the hot water and stir.
- Add the jeans or denim fabric to the dye bath and stir for up to 30 minutes (or until the colour is a little darker than what you want).
- Remove the jeans from the dye bath and gently squeeze the excess solution (don't wring).
- Rinse in cold water until water runs clear.
- Air-dry, optional: iron on a low setting while slightly damp.
- Clean the workstation using soap and/or bleach with warm water as soon as possible after dyeing.
