Try this creative tie-and-dye activity at home with your kids this weekend 

Tie-and-dye is a DIY activity that has been a timeless favourite across generations. A few simple materials, participation of all family members and lots of fun are the requirements of carrying out this amazing experiment at home. In this process, dye is applied to a fabric that has been set up with a number of resists. Resists are areas in a piece of fabric where the cloth has been tied or starched to inhibit colour absorption. They are created by crumpling, twisting, folding, and even “tying” the cloth prior to applying the dye. This technique generates a pattern on the fabric after the resists are removed later on. Here is a fun tie and dye activity for you to try with your kids this weekend.  

What you’ll need   

• White T-shirt 

• Rubber bands 
• Fabric colours 
• Brush 
• A glass bowl 
• Water in a small tub 
• Soda ash 

How-to 

Get these on a table, call your kid and start the experiment. Here’s a step-by-step guide for the process: 

• Take the white T-shirt and dip it in water. 
• Remove the dipped shirt from the tube and squeeze the water. 

• Ensure that the T-shirt is a little wet even after water has been squeezed from it. 
• Make knots in the centre of the T-shirt and tie rubber bands to the knots. 
• Start colouring the knotted areas of the T-shirt with fabric colours of your choice. 
• Dip the excess fabric colour on the paint brush in a bowl of water. 
• Remove the rubber bands after you’re done colouring the knots. 

• Make similar knots elsewhere at different points on the T-shirt. 
• Tie rubber bands to those knots and start colouring the knotted part with other fabric colours using your creativity. 
• Dip the tie-and-dye T-shirt in a mixture of soda ash. 
• Once done with the colouring bit, remove all the rubber bands. 
• Now, re-tie the coloured edges of the created pattern. You can attempt drawing flowers or any other pattern on the edges as you like. 
• Complete the colouring process before the T-shirt dries out completely. 

• Allow the T-shirt to dry out for sometime under a fan or in natural light. 
• Wash the T-shirt to make sure there’s no excess dye on it even after drying it under the fan or natural light. 
• Dry out the T-shirt once more. It is now ready to be worn by anyone.