Ombre Powder Dyed Shirt

After making my orange powder dyed shirt, I knew I wanted to play around with powder dye a little more. Rit powder dyes are a solid color when you mix them with water, but when you play with the powder, you get a lot more tone and texture, which is so much fun!

To make an ombre powder dyed shirt you need:
Plain white shirt
Rit Powder dye (I used Royal Blue)
Spray bottle with warm water
Rubber gloves (NOT optional – unless you want to look like you squished a Smurf, you REALLY need them!!)
Large Garbage Bag (optional)
Bucket or other plastic container/bin
note: You’ll also want a scrubby sponge and some cleaning supplies on hand if you do this in the tub

Start by laying out the shirt. I lay mine out in the bottom of my tub. If you’re worried about getting dye stains on your surface, lay down a large garbage bag to protect the surface. Spray the shirt so that it is damp.

Open up the box of dye. Inside there will be a paper package. Tear off a corner, and start sprinkling the dye on the lower 3/4 of the shirt.

Keep adding layers, creating an ombre effect. The dye will look VERY dark – don’t worry! A lot of it will wash out.

Now spray the shirt until it is soaking wet. This part is so much fun, as you watch the colors seep into the shirt. Once the shirt is completely soaked, it is time to color the back. You could flip the shirt over and repeat the process, but I decided to roll up the shirt from the right side to the left to transfer dye onto the back.

Wearing rubber gloves, squeeze the water down the shirt. This will help the dye transfer, and help with the ombre look as well.

Once you’ve squeezed out most of the water, you can set the shirt aside. I left my shirt out for about 2 hours to let the dye set.

Once you’ve let the shirt sit for as long as you like, quickly rinse off the excess powder dye, and toss it into the wash. You wan to wash it all by itself, using cold water, and set the washer to the largest washer setting possible (so the machine really fills up with water). Then toss it in the dryer, and you’re all set!