Est. 2010
Crumple Tie Dye Technique: Sweatshirt Edition
Crumple Tie Dye is super popular right now. Lucky for you, it’s also super easy!
After I shortened this too-long (for me!) sweatshirt, I looked at it in the mirror and thought…
Meh.
There was nothing wrong with it, per se, but it’s not very fun, now is it?
I decided not to settle for a bland and boring sweatshirt…and nor should you!
Here’s how to Tie Dye using the Crumple Technique!
What Fabric should I use?
I chose a 60% cotton/40% polyester sweatshirt for this project.
You’ll want to make sure whatever fabric you use is at least 60% cotton. The higher the cotton ratio, the more dramatic your end result will be.
Since I wanted a slightly faded look (very trendy right now), I was okay with my 60/40 split.
Make sure you wash your shirt before you start this project, even it’s new! New clothing can sometimes have a slight residue that will keep it from dying well.
Keep your shirt damp for this project! If you dry it after washing it, just dampen it again.
What Dye should I use?
I prefer Rit dye for tie dye projects. Tulip also makes dye specifically for tie dying (and even kits), but I prefer Rit for the following reasons:
Time to gather your supplies!
Here’s what you’ll need to create your own Tie Dye masterpiece!
Once you’ve gathered your supplies, it’s…
Time to crumple your shirt (or whatever else you’re dying)!
This seems pretty self-explanatory, but you just want to crumple your shirt with your hands (as opposed to say…your mouth or knees).
When you’re done, it’ll look something like this:
Bundle your crumpled shirt with rubber bands.
Just wrap the bands around your crumpled fabric enough to to hold it together.
Mix your dye.
The recipe for this is 2 tablespoons of dye + 2 cups of hot water (from the tap is fine).
Shake your bottles well when you’re done, and they should look something like this:
Put a baker’s rack in your sink or in a plastic tub.
I have a MASSIVE kitchen sink, so that’s what I’m using.
The baker’s rack will help keep the dye from pooling on the bottom of your shirt.
Add the dye!
Time for the fun part!
This is an exercise in restraint, my friends. You’ll want to make sure to leave some white spaces between the dyed parts for contrast. It’s harder than it sounds.
Let your shirt sit for 30 minutes.
You can use this time to eat a snack, contemplate the mysteries of the universe, or fantasize about how awesome your new shirt is going to look!
Mix your Color Fixative.
Just like with the dye, you’ll be mixing 2 tablespoons of fixative with 2 cups of hot water.
Cover both sides of your shirt with the fixative.
Now for the part where some of you are going to think I’m nutty.
Wrap your shirt in plastic wrap.
I’m serious, you guys.
Do it.
Make sure to wrap it really well so it doesn’t leak.
Line the bottom of your microwave with paper towels.
Put your plastic-wrapped shirt inside and microwave for two minutes.
This is to heat cure the dye! Because no one should have to wait 8+ hours to wear their sweet newly tie dyed sweatshirt.
Unwrap your shirt and remove the rubber bands.
Let your shirt cool for a minute or two. Then unwrap it from its plastic cocoon and remove the rubber bands.
Rinse it out!
Rinse out the excess dye with cold water.
Wash it!
To make sure the colors in your shirt don’t bleed, wash it in cold water with an old towel in your washing machine.
Wear it!
After your shirt is washed and dried, it’s ready to be released out into the world!
I LOVE how this turned out, and think it’s a BIG improvement from that plain white sweatshirt!
Here’s what it looks like from the back!
As it has been frrrrrreezing everywhere as of late, including South Carolina, I styled my new tie dyed sweatshirt with my camel coat (a consignment store find!).
Of course, I had to brave the cold to take a few pics sans coat as well!
I’m glad I went with the two-color approach, as I really like how the coral and teal work together.
This is such an easy DIY project that doesn’t require any artistic skill but is still fun and creative (and kid-friendly)!
Have you tried this technique in the past? I’d love to know how it went! And if you haven’t, I hope you’ll give it a try soon!
Cheers!
Crumple Tie Dye Technique DIY
Use this easy, classic crumple tie-dye technique to create a one-of-a-kind look!
Materials
Tools
Instructions
Notes
This is an exercise in restraint, my friends. You’ll want to make sure to leave some white spaces between the dyed parts for contrast.
Like this:
42 Comments
Wendy F
hahaaha. I TOO was wondering why and the world YOU fixed that plain white sweatshirt.
Pascale M
Thanks for yours posts ! (My english is very simple but i try to read in vo…) It rains too much in my country (France ) and i wait the sun !!!
Sue
Thanks! I don’t even HAVE a microwave so that’s really not an option. But plastic-wrapped and set on the dashboard of the car on a sunny day might work.
What about a low oven (with no plastic, obviously)?
Jennifer Andersen
So I totally want to tie dye something like right now! Awesome outcome on the shirt! I’m going to try this one.
Stay well.
Luisa Paris
It came out so cute!! And you are so funny! I love reading your step by step =)
Christine S
Thanks for the post. It’s great to see you up and about and having fun even if it is chilly.
andreawfhadventures
Sweet! And thank you for responding so quickly! Getting my RIT on this weekend! Wish me luck!
Amanda Becker
Love your color placement! I have to try this now.
Jennifer
OMG! I love your hair and the sweatshirt, lol.
JJ
My hubby and I are almost at the point where we might have less “good” towels and more “play towels”. We live right by the beach and one of our dogs loves going swimming. We go through a lot of “play towels”.
JJ
What a great idea! My dad worked for IBM when we were little. When IBM had their picnics mom would make all 5 of us girls matching outfits. Different styles but made with the same fabric,. That way, if anyone got lost, she could tell the “person to talk to if you have a lost child” what we looked like and what we were wearing, with an example of the outfit on one of the girls.
Refashionista
What a clever idea!!!
nerdywordybirdy
This looks so great! Took me back to my 14th birthday party when me and my friends tie-dyed t-shirts. I still wear mine to bed sometimes, lol. You could take this a step further too and tie-dye some joggers and/or a sports bra to have a matched set a la influencer! Matched sets kind of make me think of pajamas but who am I to question the trends?? Ha.
Nina Wum
Tie-dyed look is back big time! I usually go for the Broke option, aka. tie-dying using just bleach. (It’s cheap and requires no fixative.) I choose a solid colour garment with a high percentage of durable cotton in it, twist the fabric into lil knots, secure those with rubber bands, and then crumple it all together in a ball. Half a bottle of bleach added to a plastic basin filled with warm water does the job. All you gotta do is submerge your fabric bundle, let it float for an hour or two until the colour lifts and then hang it out to dry. No microwaving needed!
Refashionista
So clever! I’ll have to give that a try soon!!
Barbara Christianson
I love the result. I haven’t done this in about 50 years, but you’ve inspired me to do it again.
Nancy Lathan
Love your tie dye project! Trying to get the nerve to dye something myself….
Love to get your emails. Take care 🙂
Ann Brookens
Everyone needs an old towel or two for dyeing things or drying dogs or big clean-up projects! This turned out really cute! My own projects always seem too pale…but I’ve never tried microwaving them!
Pascale M.
Bonjour, Vous êtes toujours aussi radieuse et cela fait vraiment plaisir à voir Jillian. Je n’ai toujours pas de micro-ondes je dois donc attendre 8 heures de “prise de la teinture” ? Merci pour tous vos conseils.Portez-vous bien !
Refashionista
Hello there! I don’t speak French, but I used Google Translate! 🙂 You really do want to use heat to get the dye to cure properly. But if you don’t have a microwave, you can just leave it in the sun for an hour (not super helpful when it’s cold, I know!).
Ginger Moshofsky
So good to see you! This looks super fun!
Kay
Fun City! Love how your two colors played together. Couldn’t be cuter, and the refash sweatshirt, too. Always great to see a post from you in my mailbox!
Sue
Is letting it sit for eight hours a viable non-microwave option? And in that case do we still wrap it in plastic while it waits? Thanks?
Refashionista
You really do want to have heat to cure the dye. If you don’t want to microwave it, you could leave it in the sun for an hour (wrapped in plastic). The plastic plays the role of keeping the heat in (sort of like a greenhouse).
Now, if you aren’t very particular about color bleed or intensity, you could just leave it overnight, but you won’t get the same result pictured here.
You could also try one of the Tulip brand tie dye kits that don’t need heat to cure the dye.
Candy
LOVE this, Great job!!!!!
Susan
I love it ! You styled it so nicely also tfs
Mary Beth
I was confused by the original plain white sweatshirt, so this makes so much more sense! Thanks for the tie-dye how-to.
Refashionista
I was worried you guys would think I had become incredibly boring. 😉
Nope, just wanted to divide this refashion into two posts, since the dye part has a lot of instructions!
Jayne
Nice. Always makes me smile when I have an email with a new post. As for the step-by-step crumpling instructions, believe it or not I would have been second guessing myself. Is this crumpled, is it crumpled enough.? Lastly you look well. Stay safe.
Ingrid
Always so happy to see a new post from you. Brings some fun to my day. That turned out really cute. And… I like the photos for all the steps that I should already understand. Lets me know that what I was thinking is correct.
andreawfhadventures
Love it! Would it also work on some comfy old (well loved) sweaters? They need some fun…kind of boring and dingy…. would love to give them new life!
Refashionista
Heck yeah! Here’s a faux tie-dye sweater I refashioned a while back: https://refashionista.net/2020/03/20/a-super-comfy-bowl-dye-cropped-sweater-refashion/
Joy Poulos
Loved seeing you in my mail. Your new do is really cute. You are so Inspiring and refreshing.
Nina from Southern California
Love this one and especially how the front is so centered to frame your face, awesome !!! Love the back around the neck area, too. Did you target those areas on purpose (’cause I think we should now) to get that perfect effect ?
Murielle
Ah, this takes me back about fifty years! Yes, we tie-dyed all sorts because it was fun and pretty and so trendy. I didn’t have anything turn out like your fabulous top, though. Brava! Brava! Brava!
Karen
SO cute! I wish I had the patience to tie dye. Plus, the confidence it would come out well, lol. Also, I really dig your camel coat!
Cynthia Rice
Love it so much easier now then back in my hippie days. Microwave tip=super!
Marie
It looks great! I tried this with my grandkids last summer. So much fun! Then we threw a tie-died shirt family BBQ. We looked fabulous. Lol.
KK
I used to tie dye old light colored shirts with preschoolers before end of year out door field trips. The kids used lots of rubber bands to twist the fabric, then squirted happily. The matching purple tie dye shirts helped keep kids visible with large groups of school children in the zoo and parks.
KittyGritty
Oh my gosh, this is great. Love it. And love your “hairdo”!!!!!
April Blake
Now you have me wanting to tie dye stuff too!!
Cathleen
Ohhhh love this! What if you don’t use the fixative? Asking for a friend 😉
What do you think?
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