kalanamak Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/3362-AA.shtml?lnav=clothing_women.html The style right now seems to be shorter dresses than I like (I like to wear knee high hose, not panty). I'd love a closet full of cotton, empire dresses with pockets. However. I don't want them all to be white. Anyone try dying these? Anyone have any links to stores that carry this kind of dress not needing dying? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLDebbie Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 I've not dyed those dresses but I have ordered and dyed plenty of other items from Dharma Trading. Their stuff is generally good quality and holds dye well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justLisa Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 I have not. But thank you thank you for the great idea! I have been trying to think of something fun to do with dd and a couple of her friends. I'm going to order some t's to tie dye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 :bigear: I'll be keeping an eye on this thread. DD has outgrown the wonderful girl's cotton knit dresses from Lands End and we haven't yet found anything similar in ladies sizes. It just might be worth trying these dresses with the available dye pack. Reviews are good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambam Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 Yes, we have. We dyed one of their white cotton dresses and some of their tote bags using RIT dye. The color in the dress didn't end up solid but more of a watercolor effect with slightly darker and lighter colors. All our stuff did from that particular dye job. I don't think it was the materials, but potentially operator error. Or it may have been because my dh kept throwing in various other garments into the batch so we could 'use up all that dye." I will say that the dress is actually much prettier with the subtle watercolor effects that if it had been solid. My husband actually threw in a very nice white dress shirt that had ring-around-the-collar that I had not been able to get out. It came out a lovely pale green with no sign of ring-around-the-collar! We have a couple more dresses from Dharma to dye, but we want to try the Ombre method! http://www.ritdye.com/dyeing-techniques/ombr%C3%A9-dyeing Doesn't that look cool? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Um_2_4 Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 Has anyone tried embellishing these? like maybe fabric appliques or adding a tier to the little girls dresses?? Are they good sewing quality? I would love to dye dresses and leggings to match for DD and then embellish from ALL the fabric I have around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 If you do it, order the high quality dyes from Dharma. They work really well. RIT will dye something this large unevenly and you may continue to leach dye in the wash. Be sure that you use the right chemicals and processes too - like sealing it with Retayne. I haven't done this in a couple of years, but I remember it was a process and involved more than just the dye to work properly. Dharma has some great articles on their site with all the instructions to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kebo Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 I bought some child size tops and bloomers and dyed them with materials from their site. They turned out well, and I was just thinking about getting some more. We had a blue dye (can't recall the exact shade) that was lovely. The dye held up pretty well, but there was some fading over time. The clothes were nice....comfortable and soft....but they did seem to stain easily (I had the same problem with Hanna Anderson clothes, so I don't think it reflects poor quality in any way). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 I've thought about dying dresses from Dharma, but never have. I love this company's empire waist dresses, but they don't have pockets. They could probably add pockets to the jumper styles: The Scarlet Thread I think Serengeti might have some ready-made empire waist styles. Look in their outlet section for better prices: Serengeti Here are some more places to order custom made empire waist dresses. I've ordered from both companies and have been happy with the quality: Ringger Clothing Lilies of the Field Apparel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted October 14, 2012 Author Share Posted October 14, 2012 Here are some more places to order custom made empire waist dresses. I've ordered from both companies and have been happy with the quality: Ringger Clothing Lilies of the Field Apparel Did the clothes have to be ironed? I don't have to have the starched look, but the cotton dresses I have now I wash on gentle, take out immediately, shake and hang and they just look soft and casual without ironing. What materials did you use? Thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 Did the clothes have to be ironed? I don't have to have the starched look, but the cotton dresses I have now I wash on gentle, take out immediately, shake and hang and they just look soft and casual without ironing. What materials did you use? Thanks!! From Ringger Clothing, I only have denim skirts and a flannel nightgown. I tumble the denim skirts for about 10 minutes and then hang to dry. They are soft enough for me and I rarely iron them, except sometimes the hems which can curl up if the skirt is dried too long. I dry the flannel all the way; it shrunk some as expected but is soft. Amy Ringger is super nice and could probably tell you which fabrics would be soft and wrinkle free after just hanging. She can also send you fabric samples. I've ordered an empire waist dress and lots of skirts from Lilies, in 100% cotton prints, denim, and flannel. I tumble all of them for a few minutes after washing and then hang to dry. The 100% cotton prints do require a little ironing. They don't look horribly wrinkled, but I think they look neater and feel softer ironed. The flannel skirt is soft and looks nice without ironing. The denim skirts sometimes need to be ironed, especially their hems. Lilies will also send you fabric samples. I would imagine you might have better luck not needing to iron their poly/cotton blends. Hope this helps! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawana Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 I've not dyed those dresses but I have ordered and dyed plenty of other items from Dharma Trading. Their stuff is generally good quality and holds dye well. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jann in TX Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 I use the dyes from Dharma. I also 'splatter dyed' one for dd-- it was so cute. I laid cut out hearts (paper) on the pockets and a few small ones here and there on the skirt part. I used a spray bottle and lightly sprayed/splattered with 2 different colors. The covered areas remained white...The effect was awesome-- and so easy too. I LOVE Dharma! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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