Fill a pot big enough to let your fabric swim. That’s not a metaphor—if the fabric is cramped, it’ll come out stripey and angry. Use enough water so it can twirl like a ballerina.
Add the dye powder or liquid. Stir it like you’re making a witches’ brew—constantly. If you stop, you’ll get tie-dye. Unless you want tie-dye. In that case, go nuts. Tie-dye is the mullet of fabric: business in the front, party in the back.
Salt and Vinegar: Not a Salad Dressing
For cotton and linen, add a cup of salt to the dye bath. It helps the dye grab on like a toddler to a candy shelf. For wool or silk, use vinegar—a half cup. It makes the fibers acidic, which is their love language.
Fun fact: the ancient Egyptians used salt and vinegar to dye fabrics 4,000 years ago. So if this fails, you can blame the Pharaohs.
