Published Date May 29, 2019
Is there anyone who doesn't love tie-dye maxi dresses? Long, billowy and oh so flattering, maxi dresses can play the perfect part for any occasion, whether you're attending a wedding or sipping a fresh bevvy at the beach with friends. And with tie dye being such a hot fashion trend again this year, it's no wonder we've been seeing tie-dye maxi dresses float down the runways in a stunning array of color combos that'll make anyone want to bust out their credit card and pay top dollar for these drool-worthy dresses. BUT, before you spend a car payment or month's worth of rent on a designer tie-dye maxi dress, finish reading this post so you can see how easy it is to tie dye your own sartorial work of art for a fraction of the cost with Tulip Tie Dye and ... wait for it ... a paintbrush!
- Tulip One-Step Tie Dye Party Kit
- White 100% natural fiber maxi dress (cotton, rayon or silk)
- Large paintbrush (ex. 3-inch wide bristle section)
- Disposable plastic cups
- Extra dye bottles (for mixing dyes - or you can use plastic cups)
- Scrap white fabrics for testing dye colors
1. First choose your dye colors. Colors shown here are violet, teal, blue and red & black mixed to make burgundy. (Tulip dyes are totally mixable so you can create your own custom shades if you want.) Add water to the dye bottles and shake to mix.
2. If you have extra dye bottles, pour some of the violet into an extra bottle and refill with water. Shake to mix up a pastel violet shade. If you are using plastic cups, pour out at least half of the violet dye into a plastic cup and refill the dye bottle with water to create your pastel violet shade. Test on a scrap piece of fabric to make sure you like the color. Add more water or dye to lighten or darken if needed.
3. To create burgundy, pour out some of the red dye and add some black dye to the red dye bottle. Shake to mix and test, then add more black dye as needed until you are happy with the color.
4. Pour all of your dyes into individual clean plastic cups.
5. Cover your work surface with the plastic table cover from your kit. Wash your dress (without fabric softener) and leave it damp. Lay it out flat on your covered work surface.
6. Dip your paintbrush into the pastel violet dye (or whatever dye color you choose to work with) and brush the dye onto the top section of dress, brushing downward towards waist. Reload brush with dye as needed as you brush onto dress.
7. Clean brush and load with next dye color. Brush underneath first color, brushing downward towards bottom section of dress as well as blending upward into first dye color.
8. Repeat process with each dye color, working your way to the bottom of the dress and blending dye colors into one another for a true ombre tie-dye look.
9. Cover dress with plastic and let set 8 hours or overnight. Launder according to instructions.
Now you're ready to rock a colorful new summer look that'll turn heads everywhere you go! It's up to you whether you want to keep everyone guessing which designer you're sporting or let them in on your little DIY tie-dye fashion secret.
