How to Tie-dye Canvas Fabric? Tote Bag & Sneakers

Tie-dyeing canvas fabric is amazing! We are here to teach you how to tie-dye a canvas tote bag and canvas sneakers.

Tie-dye is a technique for dyeing fabric that produces distinctive patterns by bunching and tying the fabric to keep certain areas dye-free. Tie-dyeing T-shirts, shawls, and fabric used to make pillows are common.

Canvas fabric is an excellent tie-dye project. The size keeps the folding and tying process manageable, and the low price makes experimentation affordable. Read and learn how to tie-dye canvas fabric.

How to Tie-Dye a Canvas Tote?

You can easily tie-dye a canvas tote bag with some basic materials and some spare time. The procedure is easy, and the outcomes are consistently distinctive and striking. Here are the instructions for tie-dyeing a canvas tote bag.

1. You can manipulate the tote bag however you like: fold, crumple, twist, and bunch.
2. Rubber band together the fabric pieces into bundles. The tie-dye design’s pattern is determined by the placement of the bands and the folds in the fabric. While the rubber band is cinching the fabric, the dye only penetrates exposed areas of the fabric, frequently resulting in circular patterns.
3. 1 gallon of water should be put in a sink. 1 cup of soda ash, also known as sodium carbonate, should be dissolved in the water.
4. Up to 15 minutes should be spent soaking the canvas tote in the soda ash solution. Ensure that the tote is thoroughly damp but not sopping wet by pressing out enough water.
5. To shield your hands from the dye, put on some latex gloves.
6. Spread out several newspaper sheets to cover and safeguard your work surface.
7. Onto the tote bag, squirt various dye colors. Feel free to use any color. To prevent significant areas of undyed fabric, firmly press the squirt bottle nozzles into the tote’s folds and creases. Make the tote’s design depend more on the fabric’s creases and folds than on the placement of the dye.
8. The tote’s rubber bands should be taken off. After that, fold, crumple, and twist it differently, then re-tie it and add more dye. Repeat this procedure until the tote is completely covered in dye, creating the desired tie-dye effect.
9. Your dyed tote should be kept damp for six to 24 hours by placing it in a plastic bag. More vivid colors are produced by sitting longer.
10. Untie the tote and take it out of the plastic bag. To get rid of extra dye, wash the canvas in your washing machine with warm water. To set the dye, dry the tote on the hottest setting on your dryer.

Related:

• Can You Use Acrylic Paint on Canvas Fabric?
• How to Paint Canvas Fabric?
• Can You Use Fabric Paint on Canvas?

How to Tie Dye Canvas Sneakers?

There are two methods you can use to tie dye sneakers: the “wet” method and the “dry” method.

• Wet Method — As you can probably deduce from the name, this method entails applying dye to a wet shoe. Working with a wet shoe will cause the dye to quickly spread and produce a watercolor effect. Beginners might find that this is the simpler of the two dyeing techniques even though you can’t really control the outcome and it doesn’t require any “patterning.”
• Dry Method — This method entails applying dye to a dry shoe. You’ll have more control over the placement of your dye and can create more intricate designs when working with a dry shoe. A little bit of dye will penetrate the fabric, but not nearly as much as with the wet method.

Wet Method

As was already mentioned, the dye spreads quickly when applied to wet shoes, so in this case, less is more.

You really have no control as to how wide or where the dye will spread, but the one aspect you do have control over is the color layout. Your colors will be brighter and more saturated where the dye is applied, and less vibrant where it spreads.

Remember that the colors will blend together where they touch as you decide where to place them. The degree of the “ombre” and/or blending will depend on how much white space you leave between each color.

Apply 1-2 drops of dye to your shoe slowly, letting it spread as you go. Once you’re satisfied with the color coverage of your entire shoe, keep adding dye!

Dry Method

As was already stated, working with a dry shoe gives you more control over the placement of your dyes and makes creating designs simpler.

Tip: Make sure the shoe is horizontal to your surface as you dye each section to prevent the dye from dripping.

• To create dots: hold your dye bottle above your shoe (4-6 inches) and let 1 drop fall at a time. Before moving on to the next dot, give the dye 10 to 15 seconds to permeate the fabric’s surface and settle. Move slowly!
• To create stripes: touch the tip of your dye bottle to the surface of your shoe, VERY gently squeeze the bottle, and slowly the drag bottle in the direction of the stripe. Before beginning the next stripe, give the dye 10-15 seconds to permeate the fabric’s surface and settle, just like you did with the dots.

When working with the dry method you can also achieve a splatter effect by holding your dye bottle 12-15 inches above your shoe with one hand and tapping the tip of the bottle with the other (gloved!) hand.

When holding the dye bottle farther away from your shoe, you’ll get smaller splatter dots; when holding it closer, larger ones.

Conclusion: Tie-dye Canvas Fabric

Before adding the dye, you must first wet the fabric. Rinse the fabric as soon as you’re finished dyeing it in cold water. Lastly, rinse the fabric in a vinegar and water solution for 30 minutes before washing it in cold water. If you’d like to clean the fabric instead, you could also use a mild detergent.

Fabric that has been pre-washed will take dye better. A muddy brown will result if you place two colors that are opposite each other.

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