I immediately decided that I needed a colored crinoline of my very own, but the universe decided to make me work for it.
Problem 1
I kept searching through every tutorial that I could find and they all followed instructions for dyeing in a washing machine. BOO. Like a lot of slackers that like spending their money on far less useful things, Josh and I do not own a washing machine. I do laundry at the washateria down the street. And you know what? I wouldn't feel guilty about dyeing something in one of those washers if I felt like I could do a good job of cleaning up. Guilt wasn't really the problem. I was scared. I am a big, big fraidy-cat and I thought that if I got caught they'd kick me out. Who wants to get kicked out of a laundromat? They don't have signs posted against dyeing anything, but I didn't want to risk it. I would have to dye my crinoline in a plastic bin at home.
Problem 2
Once I'd figured out that dyeing at home was going to be the way to go, I started looking at dyes. I had read somewhere that Jacquard Dyes were the best, but after reading the instructions on acid dye and finding that it would not color nylon, I decided to go with RIT and use a large plastic bin to protect our old ceramic-coated bathtub from permanent staining. Jacquard's IDye DOES dye nylon, but I didn't actually know that until about five minutes ago. Huh.
Problem 3 (or, hardly a problem at all)
After looking at the RIT website and seeing their color formula guide, I decided to make my life a little bit more difficult than it had to be. Instead of doing what the smart girls before me did and choosing a pre-mixed color, I decided that I was in love with blue #201. I don't know if you've seen the formulas on the website, but they look like this:
1 Tbs Evening Blue
1/2 Tsp Navy Blue
1 cup water
Somewhere else on the website they tell you that this formula is written for one ounce of fabric. AFLASDJLFKSADL. I converted ounces to pounds to calculate how much dye I would need, and then multiplied the number of teaspoons and tablespoons accordingly. I came up with 1/2 cup of Evening Blue dye and 3 tablespoons of Navy Blue for my crinoline, which weighed a little under a pound while dry.
Finally, directions
First, I gathered my supplies:
personal photo
one bottle of Navy and one bottle of Evening Blue
one bottle of distilled white vinegar (I used one cup per dyeing session)
rubber gloves
a large Rubbermaid tote
measuring cups and spoons
Soft Scrub with bleach for clean-up
To start, I washed the crinoline a couple of days before to make sure it was clean and would take the dye better. RIT recommends using the hottest water possible, so I cranked the hot water in the tub and let it run while I boiled some water in a pot on the stove. When the water got really hot, I started to fill the bin. I also tossed the crinoline in to get it wet and after making sure there were no dry spots, I pulled it out of the water and set it aside. I then started to add my dye. I added the one cup of Evening Blue and three tablespoons of Navy, let the running water agitate it a bit and then added a cup of vinegar to the mix. Once it looked like the water level in the bin was high enough to cover all of the fabric, I put on some gloves and dunked the crinoline into the mix.
I left the crinoline in the dye bath for about an hour, stirring it occasionally. When I thought that the water might be cooling off a bit, I added the hot water that I had boiled on the stove. When the hour was up, I carefully pulled the crinoline out of the water and set it at the far end of the bathtub while I emptied the bin. After that was done, I rinsed the crinoline in warm water until the water ran clear. I hung it out to dry and then repeated the process the next day to see if I could get it to be a little darker. Yeah, I couldn't. After the dyeing was done, I cleaned up the bathtub with Soft Scrub to make sure that the color wouldn't stain anything.
The color looks much more like the first picture, almost cornflower blue but a little bit deeper. It dyed pretty evenly although I didn't constantly stir it like the directions said to. Even the netting dyed beautifully.
I did dye it a second time, but the result was pretty much the same as the first time. I've washed it and put it through the dryer once and the color has stayed vibrant. I might wash it a couple of times before the wedding just to be sure that there isn't any color transfer to my dress or my skin. I've already tried it on under the dress and it's been fine, but you can never be too cautious.
Is it the color that the RIT website showed? No, but it's still pretty. All I want to do now is sew some navy polka dot ribbon along the hem of the plain slip and maybe embroider our wedding date somewhere in gold thread for a little extra detail.
Is anyone else giving in to the colored crinoline trend?
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