Originally Posted by vschieve
Originally Posted by icon17
Hi, After you find your Red Batiks make a Extra effort to Set the dyes, I've also heard that salt/vinegar don't work to set the new dyes.
8-)
Vinegar alone does work; no salt. I just tried it on a black print piece of fabric. Back in the '60s when madras plaids were so popular, instructions were to soak in vinegar water before washing. Anyway, I wash preparing for a tee shirt quilt class last Friday and we were instructed to rinse all of our FQ's in clear water until dye disappears. Not much problem with that but the black printed fabric I have for the outside border continued to fade with every rinse until I finally remember the old vinegar thing. So after about 8 rinses that were still coming out with dye, the next one with about 1/3 cup of vinegar did the trick and the water stayed cleared. I even super swished it around and still the water stayed clear. Never added salt, just vinegar.
Vernell in Austiin
Just a note on vinegar: it only works on some, but not all, acid dyes (mainly used on nylon, silk, and wool). Most cottons are colored with fiber-reactive dyes. Also be very sure to rinse vinegar out entirely or it will eat the fabric over time, like bleach does. Bleach and vinegar are both acids. The safest, surest, and best way to set dyes in fabric is with Retayne. It is specifically made for just that purpose.