- October 17th, 2010, 5:33 pm#272409Okay, I finally finished with my GB2 suit (I mentioned it in another thread I started, but obviously this is the place to continue to convo).
I used a Navy colored uniform, bought from AJ in the GB shop. The first thing I did was run it through the laundry (warm/cold, "non-cotton wear" just in case) with bleach. When done, it was stripped down to the brown we've all been talking about.
I then used a utility sink for my dye bath, using only hot water and about 1/2 a bottle of Black RIT dye. Submerged, would move it around every few minutes, and took it out at roughly the 15 min mark. I rinsed until the water was clear. I then washed it, using a small amount of detergent, once again using warm/cold, etc. When it was done, it was spotty....it was a mix of brown and purple hues. I put it in the dryer for about 5 mins as I prepared the next dye bath (to agitate a bit, not so much to dry).
Next dye bath, used hot water and just under 1/2 a bottle of the dye. I let this sit for nearly 30 mins, and when I took it out (rinsed until water was clear), I ran it through the machine, this time on cold/cold, water only. I didn't want to wash out too much of the color, I just wanted to even things out. When I took it out, I noticed it was definitely all one color, and nearly at the point I wanted. I put it in the dryer, setting it to air dry for roughly 20 mins, and then standard heat drying for 5-10.
The color I had was definitely a shade or so lighter than I wanted, and in certain light had too much of a purple hue to it. I did one more bath, this time using 1/2 - 3/4 a bottle of Black and about half a packet of Navy powder dye, mixing it together. I let the uniform sit for 20-30 mins, rinsed, put in the washer (once again, cold/cold, water only), same air dry as before, and presto! Now the uniform looks like a faded navy in some light, and gray in other.....exactly the effect I wanted.
It really is about building up the color. You won't know what you have until you take it out of the washer. As I was dyeing, before it went into the machine, it looked pitch black--remember, a lot of the color washes away instantly.
Instead of pics here, I put up the uniform in progress in my prop section. I still need to sew on my patches, etc.
So there you go! Thanks for the tips!