PSA: My fabric dye disaster at the studio last Thursday

I was trying to hand-dye a silk slip dress a specific slate blue, but the pot was too hot and it came out a weird, muddy gray. I saved it by over-dyeing with a very weak black, which actually gave it a cool, stormy charcoal color I like more. Anyone else botch a dye job and get a happy accident?

4 comments

4 Comments

amy_anderson24d ago

See, I actually don't mind the word "disaster" here. I mean, the first attempt really did mess up. You had a specific color in mind and it went totally wrong. Just because you fixed it doesn't erase that initial panic of pulling out a muddy gray mess instead of slate blue. I've had plenty of sewing mishaps where the save was great but the moment of failure was real and stressful.

cora5183mo ago

Fabric dye disaster" seems a bit dramatic for a color you ended up liking more.

pat_jenkins3mo ago

Used to think any dye job that didn't match the box was a total failure. Valellis's story about the couch made me reconsider. A happy accident can give something more character than a perfect plan ever would.

valellis3mo ago

Remember the time I tried to dye my couch cover a light grey and it came out looking like a storm cloud? Total panic at first, but now I kind of love how dark and moody it is. Sometimes the best stuff happens when you mess up the plan completely. Gives the whole room a different vibe I wouldn't have picked on purpose.