My philosophy on redyeing shirts is similar that of home brewing beer:
If you can boil water... anyone can make a "Better then Bud Bitter"
PLEASE NOTE:
This page is intended to help you achieve a more " Screen Accurate "
color for your Noel Howard Raiders shirt when seen " In Person."
Follow these directions at your own risk.
I assume no responsibility for your actions.
With that said, the process for redyeing a NH shirt is a fairly simple procedure:
| 1) Bring a pot of water to a simmer, add 2 packs of RIT Dye Remover, mix well. |
| 2) Add shirt for about 1-2 hours, stirring every so often. |
| 3) Run shirt through a wash cycle with just bleach. This gets out any remaining color. |
| 4) Premix dye solution. Start a small load wash cycle. when machine is filled, mix in dye solution. |
Important note: Use gloves, and proper ventilation
First, Assemble everything you need to run your nice new $100 shirt through the ringer...
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I believe most agree that the stove top method works best. There's not much to this part.
Bring the pot of water to a nice simmer.
Add the dye remover, being careful not to let the water boil over.
Let the shirt cook as long a time as you can afford, 1-2 hours.
When you first put the shirt in, IT WILL turn a lovely shade of PINK...
DON'T PANIC!
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As you can see, the bulk of the color will be out within the first 15-20 minutes.
The rest of the time is a gradual process of removing what color is left.
The shirt will be a slightly "peachy" color at this point.
When you're done, rinse the shirt thoroughly before going to the bleach wash process.
Run the shirt by itself in the washing machine with about 1 cup of bleach, and a little detergent.
That should get all the remaining color out and make the shirt nearly white.
Move on to the redye process.
The Dye Process
I find the wash machine method works best for the actual dyeing process.
You get a much more even dye job and good rinsing of the remaining dye.
I use powder. I'm sure the equivalent in liquid would work just as well.
My New & Improved recipe calls for a 4:3 mix of Pearl Grey:Tan.
1 tsp Pearl Grey : 3/4 tsp Tan, per 3 gallons of water.
Basically, we're dyeing the shirt a warm pearl grey.
It is important to know how much water your washing machine uses on the small cycle.
Or how much water you plan on using in the big pot method.
This recipe is Based on the RIT recipe for "BONE" using the "small wash cycle" which they consider to be 3 gallons.
i.e.. My washer is an extra large capacity Kenmore. I found it to use
just shy of 12 gallons of water
during a low wash setting. I used a mix of (4) tsp Grey: (3) tsp tan.
Premix your dye in some hot water, fill up your washer like normal
(again, adding a little detergent to the soup) and mix in the dye.
Once the washer is filled, toss in the shirt and walk away.
Note: Wearing gloves when handling the dye or shirt while rinsing is recommended.
After the first dye/wash cycle, the shirt will look very grey.
Run the shirt through a normal hot wash cycle. This removes any residual dye and balances the color.
You should get a nice warm grey when done.
Dry the shirt like normal and that is it.
If you would like to use the bucket/pot method, make these slight alterations to the procedure.
Still following the original recipe...
1 tsp Pearl Grey: 3/4 tsp Tan per 3 gallons water,
Fill a large pot with the hottest water possible. You do not need to heat on stove.
Most large stock pots hold about 12 quarts.
Mix in your dyes, stir in your shirt and let soak/agitate for 5-10 minutes.
Rinse your shirt thoroughly and run through a wash cycle.
On the left is my NH, washer method, 4:3 dye ratio.
On the right was a light white denim shirt which soaked for 10 minutes.
The dye ratio was 1:1 for a color test.
Use your best judgement on time. Remember, IT WILL DRY LIGHTER!
Like I said, it ain't that tough.
