Colours are just lovely and there are so many possible combinations out there. Colours are a huge part of the fashion designing process, there are always new colour palettes every season which set the tone for the upcoming fashion year. Even after having so many colours, there is always the possibility of creating new hues. They contribute a lot while creating new apparel in the field of fashion designing. If the right colours or combinations aren’t used, there is a high possibility that the whole outfit may fall flat!

The way to achieve these amazing hues is by the process of dyeing, which is an integral part in the making of a garment. Fashion designing courses have dyeing as a part of their course of study in which they discuss the process and different techniques of dyeing. Hamstech offers varied fashion designing courses for all the up & coming design enthusiasts. There are dyers and dyeing units in our cities, where they dye fabrics in whichever technique and colour we like. Different dyeing techniques decide the kind of pattern that will be formed on the fabric post the process and there are a lot of interesting patterns that you can make by playing around with these techniques.

If you remember, one of the fashion trends for 2021 was tie-dye. So I don’t see any reason why you shouldn’t be trying these different techniques and get yourself some really cool dyed clothes in the process. We are only going to be talking about the easy techniques, since you’re just getting started. To learn about different kinds of dyes, the process of dyeing and much more, enrol in  Hamstech’s fashion designing courses.

Batik Dyeing

Batik is one of the oldest methods used for dyeing and is also known as wax dyeing. Wax is used to cover the areas of the fabric where you don’t want the dye reaching and the rest of the fabric is dipped into a bucket of dye solution. Once the fabric is dyed and dried, the wax is removed to reveal the untouched fabric underneath. Different patterns are drawn on the fabrics with the help of thin wooden sticks that are dipped in wax, you can also draw any design or pattern you like using these. Batik dyeing is usually done on fabrics like cotton and mainly in darker colours like maroon, dark blue, deep green and magenta. You can of course try other colours too, but they may need to be immersed in the dye multiple times to make the colour stay. There are wooden blocks with motifs carved out that are dipped in wax and printed of fabric before dyeing.

Tie-Dye

Tie-dye(1) is a fun way of dyeing fabrics and this can even be carried out at home. There are some tie-dye kits available in the market that work just fine. Tie-dye techniques involve tying parts of fabric in knots randomly or symmetrically to avoid dyeing those parts and then dipped into the dye. This creates a beautiful pattern and also creates new ones when you tie the knots differently. You can do a lot of different patterns just by playing around with different tying techniques. The results are vibrant and interesting to look at. These can also be done in a combination of colours. Tie-dye is one of the most commonly used techniques for dyeing fabrics.

Also Read: 4 Types of Printing Techniques Used in Fashion Designing

Ombre Dyeing

Ombre is a technique where the colour is intense on one end and gradually fades either into white, black or merges into another colour. The fabrics basically end up looking like a shade card depending on how many colours you use to dye it. In Ombre dyeing, a part of the fabric, by its length or width is dipped into the dye and is repeated with higher concentrations of it till you get the desired ombre effect. This technique is carried out over multiple steps while each time intensifying the shade of your dye. These fabrics make for great skirts, dresses, curtains, pillow cases, shorts and more. Do give this a try, we are sure you’ll fall in love with how your fabric looks post dyeing!

Shibori Dyeing

In shibori dyeing, the fabric is wrapped around different objects like wooden planks, tubes, pipes, boards and threads/cords are wound around them before dipping them in the dye. Due to the tightly wound threads/cords, beautiful patterns are formed on the fabric post dyeing. This is a very doable technique as long as you know what dyes to use and how to execute it. Different ways of tying the threads/cords will result in different kinds of patterns like checks, stripes, diagonal lines and so on!

Watercolour Dyeing

To achieve a watercolour dyeing effect on your clothes or fabrics, you need to paint using dyes. As dyes tend to spread and smudge especially when painted on fabrics, the watercolour effect comes through. You can mix dyes or buy ready-made fabric dyes in colours that you want to work with and just do blotches of dyes on the fabric. The dyes will start spreading and merge with the other colours to create beautiful patterns all over. Make sure to dampen the fabric before you start painting with dyes as this will help the dye to spread freely. Dry fabrics will not give you the desired effect.

You can try these and many more new techniques at a fashion designing course like the ones offered by Hamstech. Sign up and get splashing!