Dy(e)ing for a change

"bowl" in case anybody is wondering what on earzh a boel is"!

That's amazing Jane. I used to dye shoes too in the 60's never thought about gloss paint so, something else I will experiment with. Thanks.

As has been mentioned finding dyes now is not as easy as it was back then when there were certain dry cleaners who would dye curtains professionally. I buy dyes at a couple of local ironmongers, failing that I buy them on Amazon.

Yes, I remember tie-dyeing Aka

I dye most things in the washing machine and the instructions are, after dyeing, run a normal wash in an empty machine. This cleans out any remaining dye successfully.

I found out too mcem, anything with elastic in it won't work. Best results with 100% cotton.

I use Colour Catcher sheets that I buy in the pound shop if I'm not too sure about something that might run in a mixed wash.

Aka DH and I tie-dyed a small white tent orange in 1970 to go to the pop festival at Krumlin near Halifax. The festival ended in chaos as someone ran off with the proceeds and the weather turned wet and windy. I don't know what happened to the tent afterwards.

I think that is an important factor in dyeing mcem, weigh the garments and use the recommended amount of dye.

Haven't heard of the 'buy and dye' in Sainsbury's Soutra but it sounds worth a look. Thanks.

Made a faux pas . Run a very hot wash after dyeing as mcem has said.

Yes, it's a very important step if you don't want an OH in a pink karate gi, which is what happened to a friend of mine.

I wanted a french-navy blue handbag to match my shoes for my going away outfit for my first wedding. I couldn't find anything that matched, so I bought a tester pot of paint and ended up painting both bag and shoes, I never looked back. I have even painted long suede purple boots - remember those? I just used gloss pain as usual and brushed it into the suede.

Back in those days I could buy small squares of leather and suede to practice on from a small shoe repair shop, maybe now a charity shop would be best for experiments.

By "buy and dye" I just meant cheap linen and cotton items from cheap shops/supermarkets which come in a very restricted range of colours including white!

I can see that now!