It has been quite awhile since I’ve had the chance to be crafty.  I have several unfinished projects lying around my house, but I was ready something new and fun.  I think that tie-dye is the perfect thing for a summer project.  I haven’t done anything with tie-dye since high school.  My son kept giving me crazy looks when I set out all of the supplies for this project.  He was a bit skeptical.  I was super excited to try out Tulip’s Rainbow Tie-Dye Kit that I received. 

I have to admit that I was quite unsure of myself while going through the process of tie-dying the pillowcase.  I went online and looked at several different tie-dye projects for ideas.  There are a ton of different patterns and techniques that you can use when tie-dying.  I chose to use the Bullseye Technique for tie-dying.

I got my supplies all organized, and used the following:

• Tulip Rainbow Tie-Dye Kit
• Tulip Surface Cover
• Plain white pillowcase
• Paper towels
• Plastic wrap

Step 1: Set Out The Supplies

• I opened the packaging for the Tulip Rainbow Tie-Dye Kit and took out the contents which included: plastic bottles with powdered dye inside, extra dye in plastic baggies, rubber bands, clear plastic gloves, and instructions.  I have a box of gloves in my garage so I brought those out for extra protection.  I tend to get a little messy.
• I decided to use colors that match my son’s room for my tie-dyed pillowcase project.  The colors in his room are blue, gray, and orange.  I had container with blue dye, but no orange or gray.  I had red and yellow, so I decided to mix them together to make orange.  Before I mixed the colors together, I asked my son, “What colors mixed together make the color orange?” He answered, “Red and Yellow”.  At least I know that he is paying attention in school.
• I then laid out the Tulip Surface Cover on my kitchen counter. Because this was a small project, I used my kitchen counters.  If it was a larger project, I would have set everything out on my kitchen table.
• Do a search online for all of the super cool tie-dye techniques that are out there.
• Get overwhelmed.
• Realize that the pillowcase that you are using is brand new. Throw it in the quick cycle in your washing machine (no fabric softener, and then dry it without a dryer sheet).
• Waste 30-40 minutes waiting.

Step 2: Prepare Your Pillowcase for the Tie-Dye

• Find the center of the pillowcase, pinch it slight, and wrap a rubber band around it.  There should be about an inch of fabric sticking out at the top.
• Lift up the pillowcase by the tiny piece that was made by the rubber band in the beginning.
• Continue wrapping rubber bands around the pillowcase with a two-inch space in between them.
• You will get to a point where the ends of the pillowcase split like rabbit ears, continue to wrap the rubber bands with two-inch spaces on the sections that split.

• Soak or dip the fabric into water (optional but the dye soaked up better being wet).
• Squeeze out excess water.

Step 3: Dye The Fabric

• Put on gloves. This is DYE, it gets everywhere.
• Mix the dye in the plastic bottles by adding water to the powdered dye inside.
• Shake up the dye really well.
• Apply the dye to one section at a time.
• I did one color at a time, alternating.
• Make sure to flip the fabric around so that each section is fully soaked in with dye.

• Add second/third/forth colors.
• The color will bleed a little. Some of the color will get into the other sections.
• Pat drips of color on your surface cover with a paper towel.  It helps from keeping the dye from getting everywhere and making a mess.

Step 4: The Waiting Process

• Wrap tie-dyed fabric in plastic wrap to keep it damp.
• Wait 6-8 hours.  I waited about 12 hours, because it sat overnight.
• Realize that you have random t-shirts around your house, and use the excess dye to make a tie-dyed t-shirt.

Step 5: Post Tie-Dye Process

• Lay out the surface cover again.
• Place the plastic wrapped fabric on top of the surface cover.
• Put on gloves.
• Cut rubber bands off of wrapped fabric. Do it gently, you do not want to cut the fabric. NOTE: You can also leave on the rubber bands during the washing process, and cut them off when you go to dry the fabric.
• Shake out the pillowcase/fabric.
• Place the pillowcase into your washing machine, wash it on HOT with a small amount of detergent.
• Dry the pillowcase.

Step 6: Enjoy The Finished Project

 Ideas for Tie-Dye Pillowcases:

Make one to take to sleep-away summer camp, Craft Project at Camp, Sleepover Activities, Birthday Presents

Tulip Tie Dye Kits are available at Walmart, Walmart Canada, Michaels, JoAnn, A.C. Moore, Hobby Lobby, Hancock Fabrics, and Meijer. Tulip Tie Dye Kit contents and colors may vary by store.

Find more ideas from Tulip Tie Dye:

@ilovetocreate on Twitter

iLoveToCreate and iLoveTulipFashionArt on Facebook

Disclosure: I was provided with the Tulip Tie Dye Kit and Surface Cover for this project.  I wrote this post as part of a paid campaign with iLoveToCreate.com and Blueprint Social. All opinions and photographs are mine.