How to dye jeans at home

Invented during the gold rush by Levi Strauss, jeans exceeded his wildest expectations. They not only remain popular after a century and a half, but are available to almost every inhabitant of the planet.

Denim fabric is highly durable, but tends to quickly lose color. By refreshing the color of your favorite trousers with dyeing, you can postpone the purchase of new ones for several months.

What products can be used to dye denim?

The chemical industry has provided a decent arsenal of dyes that are suitable for jeans. Among them:

• powder paints – provide long-lasting color, but have a very limited color palette;
• blue easy to use, cheap, but not durable; having given a rich blue color to your trousers, be prepared to see your legs, underwear, and jacket also blue;
• potassium permanganate provides a lasting specific color;
• hair dye offers an interesting selection of colors, durability significantly depends on the chosen brand;
• acrylic dyes They are suitable, first of all, for decorative painting, they are quite durable, but with washing they crack and lose their gloss;
• aniline dyes – variety of colors, ease of use, but not particularly durable;
• aerosols simple and interesting to use, they are usually durable, but harmful to the respiratory tract; when using, it is advisable to use a protective mask;
• "Dilon" – special fabric dye, durable, provides rich color.

Preliminary work

Dyeing fabric at home involves working with chemicals, and it will be inconvenient to be distracted. It’s better to prepare everything in advance.

Preparing jeans for dyeing

Trousers to be dyed must be clean and all pockets must be empty. Any contamination, especially greasy stains, will prevent uniform painting. The result may be disappointing.

Selection and preparation of dye

The choice depends on individual preferences, goals, and the availability of home colors. Having set the goal of returning the original color to your jeans and wearing them for as long as possible, it is advisable to use a special fabric dye.

If you want to add creative pants to your wardrobe, less traditional methods are suitable: acrylic, aniline, aerosol.

Having decided to refresh old jeans, but not wanting to look for a dye, why not use bluing or potassium permanganate? Especially if you already have the product at home.

Regardless of the dye chosen, it must be mixed with water until completely dissolved and mixed until completely homogeneous. Otherwise the color may be uneven.

When using a special dye, it is important to act strictly according to the instructions. If there are no instructions (potassium permanganate), provide the color with sufficient time to dissolve, at least 5–10 minutes.Then strain through a strainer or even filter the liquid by placing cotton wool, a napkin, or a coffee filter into the funnel.

Instructions - dye jeans black in the washing machine beautifully

A special dye, powder or liquid, is suitable for the washing machine. Due to its ease of use and high quality of painting, Dilon dye is rapidly gaining popularity.

Some colors are sold with rubber gloves. When working with paint, it is better to use them. If these are not included in the kit, you can use household or medical ones. For painting you need:

• dilute the color in water, observing the proportions strictly according to the instructions;
• pour the resulting solution into the drum;
• if the instructions for your dye require it, add salt or soda to the color;
• put the jeans into the drum of the machine;
• immediately start a program that meets the temperature and duration instructions; usually the most suitable is “Jeans” or “Cotton” at 60-95 °C;
• prepare a paint fixer; to do this, pour water and vinegar into a basin at the rate of 1 tablespoon of acetic acid 9% per 1 liter of water or 1 teaspoon of vinegar 70% per 2.5–3 liters of water;
• immediately after washing with a washing machine, soak the trousers in the prepared fixative for 30–40 minutes;
• after the specified time, put the pants in a regular machine wash at a temperature not exceeding 40 °C;
• After washing, straighten the jeans and hang them on clothespins by the ends or lay them out on a flat surface to dry.

Attention! When drying, take care that there are no strong creases. They can cause water pools and unevenly colored areas.

How to dye jeans by hand

For dyeing fabric in bright colors, aniline dyes, aerosols, acrylic, and in some cases hair dye are suitable.

The most common way is aniline dye. The painting process is quite simple:

• Pour water into an enamel bucket or similar large container and dilute the color; the amount of color may vary depending on the desired shade and saturation; you may want to mix 2 dye colors;
• stir thoroughly, place on the stove;
• put jeans in the solution;
• bring to a boil and reduce the burner to low;
• leave the container with the pants on the stove for 40–50 minutes, stirring occasionally;
• rinse;
• fix the paint in an aqueous solution of vinegar, soaking for 30–40 minutes;
• wash your jeans with warm, but not hot water;
• hang or lay out to dry without creases.

Painting aerosol does not require compliance with special standards. Point the can and spray the paint. Ready! When spraying, you can apply patterns and stencils for decoration.

When working with aerosol, it is important to ensure sufficient ventilation of the room so as not to inhale excessive amounts of vapor.

Take advantage hair dyeto transform jeans is a bold and risky act. When the color appears on your pants, it may not meet your expectations. However, this method does not require boiling and can be used if it is necessary to dye pants, which, after boiling, most likely will not fit due to shrinkage.

When using hair dye:

• dilute 1-2 packages of paint in a bath of water;
• put jeans in the solution for 45–90 minutes, periodically turn them over and drown them;
• rinse;
• dry.

Acrylic paints are more suitable for painting rather than dyeing jeans. They can be used like regular paints, using brushes. Some people pre-apply the drawing with a pencil.

After completing the drawing, let the paint dry, for example, from evening to morning or vice versa. Turn it inside out, iron it, after placing the paper on the picture.

How and with what to dye jeans blue

In addition to special dyes, bluing will return color to jeans. It is sold in dry and liquid form, suitable for regular color maintenance. It washes out very quickly.

Blue is easy to use:

• mix the color with water in a basin, choosing the desired color saturation and concentration, a few tablespoons of salt, stir;
• place the jeans in the basin for 2–3 hours;
• add a little vinegar to lukewarm water and rinse;
• dry by shaking first.

How and with what to dye jeans black

The highest quality and longest lasting dye is a special powder dye, such as Dilon.

If necessary, you can use hair dye to refresh your appearance. The method is described above.

How to “cook” jeans for dyeing

The concept of “boiling” jeans often raises doubts whether we are talking about the famous “boiled jeans” or not. Let's sort it out in order.

Most painting methods require high temperatures. The solution must be heated using a washing machine or stove until it is almost boiling (90–95 °C). For uniform dyeing, the water and dye should completely cover the jeans; it is recommended to turn them over periodically.

A separate digestion technology serves to obtain the “varenka” model:

• Place a container of water on the stove, add bleach at the rate of 1 liter of bleach per 10 liters of water;
• tie the jeans with a strong knot; the tighter you twist the knot or knots, the richer the ornament will be;
• put the pants in the water and cook for 15–20 minutes, constantly drowning them;
• rinse with cool water and dry.

How to fix the painting result

When working with dyes, the color is most often fixed with acetic acid. Proportions: 15 ml (1 tablespoon) acetic acid 9% per 1 liter of water or 5 ml (1 teaspoon) vinegar 70% per 2.5 liters of water.

In order for the color to become durable, jeans are placed in a vinegar solution for at least half an hour.

Conclusion

The most reliable method of painting is the use of special dyes. Sometimes you don’t want to leave the house to search.

Considering that we think about dyeing jeans after wearing them out a fair amount, experimenting with the colors available in the household seems interesting.