Dye a T-shirt or Yarn with Snow or Ice!

This is my first attempt at snow dyeing but I do know a few things: First off, you have to use fiber reactive dyes. Acid dye will not work because it needs heat to set. Also, fiber reactive dyes require soda ash as a fixative. The rest seems to be up to the dyer. Some like to lay their fiber or tshirt on a screen to catch the liquid as the snow melts, others just pile it all in a pan.

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Supplies Needed:

Safety first!

Always use a dust mask when mixing dye powder. Never dye anything in your kitchen pots and pans, unless you are dyeing with kool aid or food coloring.

Soaking in Soda Ash

Next, lay your materials out in the pot or pan, spreading it out as much as the container allows. I used a very large stockpot with a grate thingy in the bottom. This way, the melted snow can drip to the bottom, away from your materials. Like I said before, some folks prefer to just set their things at the bottom. Now, pile on the snow all the way to the top of the container. About 4-5 inches of snow should be plenty.

Adding the Dye

You can pre-mix your dyes but I chose to use the dry dye powder….. with a dust mask on my face! Carefully, sprinkle the dye powder on the snow, covering the entire surface.

This was melting very slowly so I brought the pot upstairs and let it sit overnight.

Once the snow has melted, just rinse everything until the water runs clear. Hang to dry.

The final result?

All in all a fun experiment. I’ll probably try dyeing fiber with snow again the next time we get any.

What do you think? Have you dyed with snow? How did it turn out?

**UPDATE! I’m a dunz I finally figured out that if you use Fiber Reactive Dyes with Protein (animal) fiber, you have to pre-treat the fiber with vinegar which explains why the fiber didn’t take up much dye. I learned something so I’m happy

Complete Dye Kit: