dying curtains?

redballoon_2

HI, can i dye my curtains? They are mixture of cream (not lined) its a very small repeating pattern in different shades of cream (like herringbow)
I want to dye them green to add a bit of colour in to the living room as all the walls are cream and I am wanting to introduce green to it as well (we have a dark brown leather sofa and wooden floors)

How do i go about doing this?

The curtains are 90*90 and I have two pairs in the lounge that i would want to do.

black-saturn

You can buy washing machine dyes from Woolworths or other habadashery shop for about £3. I think you have to put the garment in the washing machine with the dye and a lot of salt. Run the washing machine on the hot wash. Then when it's done you have to wash them again. Then you have to run the washing machine on a hot wash again with nothing in it. So in total you will have to run the washing machine 6 times to do 2 curtains.

sandieb

What type of material are the curtains made of? I think that if the material is cotton it will "take" the dye better than if they are of synthetic material/polyester etc. The type of material will affect the depth of colour achieved.

Hope this is right. I haven't dyed anything for years!

redballoon_2

I think they are cotton. I will ask the mother in law about it as she will know what material they are. I hope I don't ruin them!

susank

I did beige velvet curtains and made them navy blue as they were old - they are now about 25 years old and still navy blue - they wash like rags and I dyed them in the washing machine - they are used as door curtains and faded a little - just popped them in machine again with more dye and bobs your uncle.

Pink.

Hi redballoon,

If the curtain fabric has a high cotton content it shouldn't be a problem to dye them. I have only ever used Dylon washing machine dyes and they have always worked well. Have a look at their website for more information. Dylon

Pink

janthemum

I have 2 pairs of full length M&S curtains in living / dining room.
I bought them 4 years ago at £65 each ( I wasnt into OS or even money saving then so please exscduse me for the horrendous price I paid!)

They were a disaster from the start. They are the palest of cream colour, say 100% cotton but look like linen and say on them Dry Clean only ( I suspect now just to cover themselves in case they go wrong when you put them in washing machine)

The first week I had them up i was baby-sitting a puppy chiachiaua (sp!)
who sprayed wee all over them!!

Why I chose that colour in the 1st place i will never know.

My questionis can I dye them??

I want darker curtains, dark cream or biscuit as I am going to paint the room a neutral colour but darker than it is now.

Can I get a pot of dylon (Im sure my mam used to get that to dye things) I asked in a artist shop (LIKE hOBBY CRAFT BUT WASNT THAT SHOP) but didnt know!!

I dont want to fork out for new curtains as fabric is fine.

What do i do where do I get the dye? Do I use it in washing machine or bath etc etc

HELP I want a room make over without spending £150 on new curtains:j

Thanks in advance.

thriftlady_2

If they are 100% cotton they will dye well Woolworths is your shop. Machine dye is easiest, but it's best to dye them together so that there isn't a variation in colour between the two. Will they go in the machine together ?

Pink.

Hi janthemum,

I would second what thriftlady has said...as they are cotton they should be fine to dye, but do be careful if you do it in the machine as they normally recommend they are washed at at least 60 degrees to fix the dye. I washed a pair of 100% cotton curtains at 60 degrees a couple of weeks ago and they have shrunk by a good 6 inches.

For more information on using dyes, have a look at the Dylon website.

Pink

frugalfairy_3

I agree that they will probably dye well but please be aware that they will probably shrink. If you can dye them in cold water that might help a bit (not sure whether you can get cold-water dyes though, sorry). Good luck anyway.

FF

Ha! you and I were posting at the same time Pink!!

balmaiden

I have dyed several pairs of cotton curtains and I have always been pleased with the result. one thing I would say is make sure you weigh them as it determines the amount of packets of dye you should use. If you dont use the correct amount they will dye patchy and lighter than the desired colour