Sunday, January 20, 2013

Excess dye problems


Last week, I took advantage of a great 50% off sale on cotton fabrics. I purchased enough cotton drill for the dresses that I hope to make this year, plus some lighter cotton for linings. The only trouble is that the drill and cottons that I have tried to pre-wash just will not stop leaking dye. I have tried very hot water, soaking in a salt bath, detergent, vinegar, you name it - and no success. All I am doing is wasting water and dyeing the scratches in the bath surface purple! It is very frustrating. I want to take advantage of the hot weather here at the moment and have everything washed, dried and put away before it gets cold.




The maroon cotton after ten washes.




The black drill after 12 washes in hot water, 24 hours in a salt bath and a vinegar soak. This is actually a great improvement, as the water was like black oil for the first 7 washes.




I have been searching on the internet for possible solutions. A lot of the US suppliers seems to have products that might be suitable, but will not ship to Australia.

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