Tie Dye Colours - Moss Green Recipe

Who loves colder greens? Those that really remind you the magic of thick, dense forest? Today we are going to review our recipe to create the perfect Moss Green for any upholstery (or clothing, whatever you like!) renewal. This is not a Tie Dye technique, it's just a mix of dye so we will maybe spend a bit longer on explaining few more tricks about getting the perfect dye. 

Firstly it's key you get the right dye for your fabric. Check the fabric composition label and get:

1. Dye for natural fabrics when composition is over 60% natural fibres;
2. Dye for synthetic when composition is over 60% synthetic fibres. 

This time I had an old bath rug (from my grandmother) that was really near the end. Almost turning entirely yellow, and getting dirty the second I would lay it on the bath floor, I though "I can fix this" and "I am going to dye it darker!". To maintain the natural colour palette of the house I, of course, choose green. 

 

Let's prepare the dye bath first: 

1. Upholstery requires more water as we are talking about heavier items. The heavier is the item the more water and dye we need. But since I want to make it easy I suggest to fill up two 15L pots for a medium sized cotton rug. Remember that in any case the water needs to be enough to cover the item when in the bath. 
2.  Bring the water at the hottest temperature for the material you are dyeing (cotton for example can sustain 80-90 degrees no problem) and add a cup of salt. If you can't get to boil so much water just use the kettle and do it for several times till you fill the container.  
3. Soak the rug in cold water.

Now the recipe for the Moss Green. I'll remind you we are using RIT dyes as they are fairly cheap (12$ a bottle, if you buy directly from their website, and yes, they are here in Australia) and sustainable. Next time I will talk a bit more about why they are sustainable even if they are chemical (non-natural) dyes.

You will need:

• 1 part of RIT Taupe (1/3 bottle);
• 3 parts of RIT Camel (1 bottle);
• 1 part of RIT Dark Green (1/3 bottle); 

{Remember, when dyeing, you can see what colour the fabric is taking so if you don't like it, you can still adjust the shade when the water is still fairly hot.}

Once the mix is ready, add it to the dye bath. Then add the soaked rug (or your item). This time, as we are dyeing a solid colour, please remember to stir as many times as you can to avoid the dye to not distribute evenly. This is very important as otherwise you will see different areas with more or less dye. 

Now it's done! One hour is usually enough for the dye to penetrate, especially if the water was hot enough. But remember that if you leave it longer you can get a darker colour (with longer we mean overnight 6 to 10 hours)! Once you get it out of the dye, rinse till the water runs clear. 

Here is my new Moss Green Rug! What do you think?