Quick, easy, and can be done in an afternoon. I used a thrifted mens’ flannel (by Gap and purchased from Goodwill for a few bucks) and teal dye. Of course, you can use any color you’d like. This would work better with a plaid shirt that has white incorporated into the print, in order to let the dye really pop.
Check out the simple steps, below!
Supplies:
– Plaid flannel shirt
– Fabric dye of your choice (I used half a packet of RIT dye in Teal)
– Plastic tubs, preferably 2
– Water
– Access to a washing machine
1) Fill up one tub with water and dye. I did this in my bathtub (if you work quickly and wipe any dye that wanders out of the tub, you should be fine) but I’d do this outside if it wasn’t winter here in NY right now! I also only used half a packet, but you can use more or less to your liking.
2) Carefully place the bottom half of the shirt into the dye. The second tub is useful for holding the rest of the shirt and the sleeves. I moved around the shirt a bit to make sure the fabric was spread out, and left it in the dye for about 40 minutes, flipping it over every now and then (while keeping the top half in other tub). This was so that both the front and back of the shirt was exposed to the dye. You can leave it less or longer if you’d like.
3) When you’re done soaking, rinse in warm water until the it runs clear. In this picture, it’s almost there!
Toss in the washing machine (alone!) and let it run for one cycle.
Done and done. How simple was that?