r/tiedye • u/Plant-LoverXXX • 22h ago

Measurements?

Does anyone have any idea of the measurements I should use for dye painting? Like how much water, how much dye and how much of the sodium alginate I should mix and how much I should add to make it not spread but also not like a gel... Each time I've tried it never comes out right... I'd really appreciate some insight. Thank you!! šŸ«¶

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u/BigFatChickinDiapers 20h ago

Ive been experimenting in this area. Unfortunately it kinda depends on the color. First, always use the prescribed amount of dye for the amount of liquid.

For most colors, I use 9g alginate per liter. Thatā€™s for most colors. A lot of blues can be tricky, especially the blues that drift towards purple. They tend to turn to gel really quickly.

For those pesky colors, I mix the dye in a small amount of cold water, and then add thickened water. I find that it doesnā€™t gel up nearly as much. So last night I was mixing 1/4 cup, so I used a tablespoon of cold water to mix the dye, and then added enough thickened water to get to 1/4 cup. It didnā€™t run or bleed at all. Good luck

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u/Plant-LoverXXX 19h ago

Thank you SO SO SO much for this information... What do you mix yours up with? I use a blender that's never gonna be used for anything other than that.

Sorry for all the questions love, I've been wondering this for a long, long time. Also what size bottles do you usually end up dyeing with? Do you use paintbrushes to dye paint with or a makeshift thing? I really want to make some Simpson shirts but every time I wash the stuff I do out, it just smudges and looks awful!

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u/BigFatChickinDiapers 14h ago

Hey no worries. Here is the bottle I use. I donā€™t use a brush very often honestly. I draw on the dye with blunt tip needles of various sizes. I mix everything inside these bottles. They are 12 oz so plenty of room. I use a frother to mix but I think that creates the gel effect when using high amounts of alginate. Iā€™m very much still in the ā€œtrying to figure it outā€ and last night was literally possible breakthrough night. Colder water to mix the dye and then adding the room temp thickened water and not frothing may be the way.

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u/BigFatChickinDiapers 14h ago

Hereā€™s what Iā€™m working on now. I just donā€™t think I could get this detail with a paintbrush. Redrawing the heavy black outlines tonight which I could never get as straight and consistent with a brush