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CreativeCarolBoard Member, WT Editor Supporting Member!

I'm looking for advice: has anyone done tie dye using the spray tie dye method?
Can it be done within a 45 minute lesson?
How did it really go? (Was it a huge mess?)
Can it be done with younger kids (1st graders)?

We are hoping to do tie-dye t-shirts for Joseph's coat rotation.
Thanks, Carol

Update: thanks to the help I received here, our lesson turned out great. Check out the art lesson for Joseph's coat here.

7/3/0312:37 PM

Original Post

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Love to Teach

I don't know about the spray tie dye method you are talking about, but we have used a spray fabric paint on t-shirts this summer that worked really well. I think it's called Tulip Cool Color spray paint. Found it in a craft store with the other fabric paints. We had put a fish net on the shirt then spray painted for a sea effect. Immediately after spraying, the kids sponge painted sea creatures, etc...
I highly recommend trying this for tie dye as well. I think it would do fine.

7/3/034:17 PM

CindyB -- member

I have not seen the spray tie dye, but we did 'regular' tie-dye in our Joseph rotation. Our classes are about 50-55 minutes long, the kids dyed the shirts and then took them home in zip bags with directions for the drying and washing. We have K-5th in our program, I don't remember the younger kids having any problems. But rubber gloves and some sort of clothes covering are a MUST for this!!!

7/21/032:35 PM

polly -- member

We have done the spray tie-dye and got along fine. We had a few bottles of each color and of course helped with the rubber bands. You really have to spray a lot and some little fingers got sore, but the shirts looked good. We also put them (wet) in ziplok bags with directions for hanging and drying them (and subsequent washing care). Our classes are even shorter and we had time.

7/31/0311:55 PM

Neil MacQueenWebmaster and Writer Supporting Member!

Our church's vbs took tye-dyed shirts and laid letters and symbols on the shirt, then sprayed BLEACH from a spray bottle OVER the areas that were blocked off. Like "stenciling with bleach." It was very effective and looked like nothing you normally see with tye-dye. Very eye catching.
<>< Neil

8/1/0310:52 AM

nance -- member

If using bleach it should be watered down, half and half. Be very careful around children and clothing that you don't want bleached. Watch that the children don't get it in their eyes. Also use in a well vented area. Extra adults really help! This makes great shirts!

Another fun idea: use sections of fabric and make wall hangings. Cheaper than t-shirts. You can sometimes pick up cording for drape tye backs at fabric stores to hang them.
Or dye a pillow case

8/4/039:56 PM

CreativeCarolBoard Member, WT Editor Supporting Member!

More spray dye ideas...

Sue II posted

We are just finishing the Joseph rotation. The idea of Tie Dyeing shirts was great from the beginning but everything I read on the subject was so elaborate that I could not picture our kids (or Me!) doing it with the pot ash etc. I thought there had to be a better way and I finally found it. We used Tulip Cool Color Spray for Fabric which I found in our local Michaels Craft Store. We used 8 different colors and our shirts came out beautiful and we all wore them today. I found paint rags at Walmart which were of T-shirt material 8X8 square (or you could use your husband's old shirts) and made samples of different techniques for the kids to choose from. We used the marble starburst, stencil and their favorite was to use a wooden shape and spray around it so the design stayed white. We used all kinds of shapes, cross, heart, dog, dragonfly, etc. It turned out better than I had expected and the kids were so proud to wear their shirts today.

---------------------
CreativeCarol posted

Another option - creating your own stencil shapes. Avery (the label people) make a full sheet (8.5 x 11 inch) labels. Print out your design on the label paper and cut around the outside of the design (probably need to do this ahead of time). Kids then pull off the adhesive backing, place stencil as desired, and spray away.

10/8/0410:12 PM

jcarey -- member

We did tye dieing this summer and used masking tape as a stencil and had kids tape both the inside and outside of the shirt with their design and then used the fork twirl method with rubber bands to create a pie ball to then pour dye into the differnt pie slices. When it was done the shirts were tie dyed everywhere but where the masking tape was applied.

8/29/057:49 AM

Phyllis WezemanMythic WoRM Warrior (1000+ pts)

Please share more details as we will be tie dying for Joseph's coat.

8/29/058:18 PM

jcarey -- member

Another interesting tie dying method is to fold the shirt or fabric and then using paper clips place a line with interesting spacing on the folded edges. After you have applied the dye the fabric will have irregular white lines wherever the paper clips were.

11/12/052:11 PM

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