Tie Dye Knit: A Bold and Stylish Trend You’ll Love

Fashion has become the pillars that connect us to the world of fashion. It has connected the past and the present as it has merged and improved the fashion that we know today. There has been an ongoing trend that has given rise to the tie-dye knitting. This method of knitting has quite a history and now it has become a trending fashion in modern days. Tie Dye Knit may sound new to you but it is something that many of us have done when we were kids at birthday parties or camping. 

Tie-dye has a long history that traces back thousands of years. It began its journey from Asia and soon spread across the world. It was popular during the 5th century in China and it was not until the 19th century that Western cultures started practicing this trend. It is like those DIY activities that you can do by yourself anytime and anywhere as long as you have the right materials near you. I will be mentioning everything about this fun and creative activity in this article. 

What is Tie Dye Knit?

Tie dye knit is made by dyeing after folding, twisting, and knotting a fabric by using tie-dye knitting techniques. Tie-dye simply stands for tying and dyeing your desired clothing. This can be done by simply tying the clothes into different patterns and dyeing those areas. It creates different patterns as some parts of the cloth get dyed while other areas remain the same. It is an excellent way to give a new look to your old garments.

The bright colors and patterns can easily make it stand out. It is a new way to give a new life to your old and boring clothes. It is quite cheaper than buying a designer fabric and you can add any patterns to your desire. It is done by tying the areas of your dress with rubber bands where you don't want to color it. Then you can color the remaining areas. This type of dying process was done by hand but with the invention of machinery, it was quickly adapted to this new change. Although you can go to the market to buy garments, making your clothes at home could be a fun experience for you. 

The manufacturing process of Tie Dye Knit 

To make tie-dye knit there is no need to look into the fabrics. Any fabric that can absorb water can be used for this. There are a few materials that we need for making tie-dye knit.

• Dye: To make tie-dye knit we need dyes. We will find two types of dyes: cool water and warm water dyes. The best part about this type of knitting is you can use colors for your designs. You will find cool water dyes in powdered form which can be later mixed into normal water. There is no need to mix warm water dyes as you will find them in a liquid state. You can buy these from many retail and well-known brands online. These dyes can be used to dye garments such as sweatshirts, hoodies, blankets, scarves, socks, napkins, and towels. It works best on pure cotton-made garments. Using designs on light-colored garments will give you better designs. 
• Rubber gloves: Rubber gloves are a must to be used while handling dyes. The chemicals present in dyes can be harmful to direct skin contact. 

• Rubber bands: It is the most important material for tie-dye knitting. It's best to have rubber bands of different sizes and thickness. These rubber bands will be used to hold the fabric and separate areas for dying. 
• Soda ash: It is used to balance the pH level of the water. It looks like white chalk powder and by applying it to the water the garments absorb more dyes. 
• Urea: It is a common ingredient that is used by garment industries. It makes the garments look more vibrant. It will give your clothes a beautiful and vibrant finish during the dying process. 
• Buckets and squeeze bottles: It is one of the important materials for dyeing. Squeeze bottles can be filled with colors that you can apply to the clothing. These can be used to mix dyes and you can control the amount of dye that will be applied to your garments. You can mix multiple colors at a time and reuse them later. Stain from dyes can be hard to remove. Instead of using your sink to dye your clothes, it is better to dip them in a bucket. Later wash the bucket and keep it for your next project. 
• Color fixatives: It is important to use a color fixative that will keep the colors from fading. It helps to maintain the color contract and stops bleeding during washing. It can be used after you finish dying your fabric. 

Properties of Tie Dye Knit 

Fabric Name	Tie Dye Knit
Manufacturing Materials	Wool, cotton, silk, and other fabrics
Durability	Good
Breathability	Good
Fabric Shine	High
Washing Temperature	Normal
Heat Retention Ability	Variable

Applications of Tie Dye Knit

• Apparel: dresses, pants, silhouettes, t-shirts, shirts, sweatshirts, sweatpants loungewear, and party wear.
• Jackets: denim jackets.
• Sportswear: tank tops 
• Accessories: socks, bags, 

Designing ideas

Hearts

It is one of the easiest designs to start with. You can pick any of your favorite garments that you want to work with. You need to place it on a flat surface and fold it in half. Mark the half of a heart on one side of the fabric. Then start by making small pleats on the line. Now you can place rubber bands on the lines and get ready to dip them in the dye. 

Spiral

Spiral is an amazing design for fabrics. It starts with holding the center of the fabric and spinning it in a clockwise motion. It will create swirls as we twist it. It will become tight as we swirl and then we will use a few rubber bands to keep it tight. Now all that is left is to color it. We can apply different colors on different sections of the swirls. After drying, it will give us a colorful spiral design.

Stripes

There are different types of stripes that you can design on your fabric. There are horizontal, vertical, and diagonal stripes. They have their characteristics and add variations to your garments. It is important to lay the fabric on a plane surface. We have to start by folding the fabric from the bottom. We need to fold the fabric in alternating motions and tie it with rubber bands. We can separate by sections and dye the areas with different colors.  The process is the same for making horizontal and diagonal stripes. The difference is we need to fold the left side to make horizontal stripes and fold diagonal to make diagonal stripes. Then we needed to use rubber bands to hold it tightly and use our favorite colors to dye the garments.

Diamond

To make a diamond design we need to fold the fabric vertically and then horizontally. Then we need to draw a line diagonally on the corner. Now we can use rubber bands and then color the fabric. Apply colors from the other sides to create a range of diamond patterns. 

Rainbow

To make this design, you need to fold the fabric in half and draw lines on the fabric. Make small pleats and fold them along the lines. Tie the fabric with rubber bands and add colors. 

Uses of Tie-Dye Knit

Tie dye has good flexibility over female fashion. Tie-dye has been one of the best choices for designers, brands, and social media models. It has high versatility and can be applied to almost all types of fabrics. It is important to pick the right clothing for yourself. It is fashionable and fun to wear. It has good comfort and style. 

Tie-dye knit is also suitable for making fashionable wear for men. There is a wide range of designs for men's clothing. These designs fit perfectly with versatile fabrics that offer great looks and comfort. 

Washing Tie-Dye Knit

Tie dye is important to know how to wash your fabric after you have dyed it. It is recommended to let the fabric sit in a plastic bag for 24 hours after dying. Now you can take the fabric out of the plastic bag. The chemicals used to make dyes can harm your skin and leave stains for a long time so wear hand gloves. First, you should wash the fabric under cold water which will get rid of leftover dyes. 

After rinsing, you can remove the rubber bands. Now that you have removed the rubber bands, run the fabric under warm water a few times. Do this until the water turns clear. You can hand-wash the fabric or use machine washing. Use normal detergent to wash the fabric a few times. 

Now that you have washed your fabric, you need to dry it. It is recommended to use an air dryer. You can also dry the fabric under sunlight. 

Fabric care

• To ensure the quality and colors, wash clothes that have the same colour. The fabric may bleed which might ruin your other clothes which is why you must wash in normal settings. You can turn the fabric inside out before washing. It will save the front from any damage.
• Use soft detergents to wash your garments and don't use bleach or softeners. 
• Leaving your wet fabrics in the washing machine can cause them to bleed and might damage other clothes.
• Avoid placing the garments under sunlight which will result in colors fading. Use dryers under normal heat if possible or else dry indoors and under shades. 

Conclusion

The fabric has great flexibility and adds different designs. It is a great way to decorate your old clothes and give them a new look. It is a great activity for adults and children. It could be a great opportunity to spend time with your children and family. Since this process could create a mess, it is better to do it outside and with proper precautions. It can take 2-3 days of work to make your garments. The fabric is easy to care for after you make one.