Crinoline - Check!

Another DIY that I was
able to complete was my crinoline. I wanted to dye it hot pink and to be honest, this was the DIY project that I've been to most nervous about because I was afraid that I wouldn't get the color right. It turned out great! I dyed it in this plastic tub.

Materials Needed:

1. RIT dye
2. Crinoline
3. Salt
4. Hot water
5. Tub
6. Rubber gloves
7. Fabric sample (optional)
   

Directions:

1. Fill tub with enough boiling hot water to cover the entire crinoline once submerged. The hotter the better.
2. Follow the instructions on the RIT dye for adding to the water, in terms of dye needed and salt needed.
3. Wearing your rubber gloves, mix the dye around with your hands to make it even throughout.
   
4. At this point, I wanted to test the color so I had previously bought a small piece of nylon and a small piece of tulle to test.
5. I dipped in my sample and mixed it around for a few minutes. Then, I adjusted my amount of dye. (In my case, I felt that it was too light pink, so I added more dye to the water.)
6. I tested one more piece of fabric and it came out to the perfect shade for me, so I was ready to add my crinoline.
7. Now comes to hard part.. add your crinoline to the water-filled tub and begin mixing it around in the dyed-water like a washing machine would. You will want to do this for at least 25-35 minutes, depending on the color you're trying to achieve. I wanted mine darker, so I mixed it around for roughly 35 minutes.
   
8. Keep in mind that you want the color to evenly distribute throughout, so you may need to gradually pull the fabric away from other fabric since they could potentially stick together.
   
9. After 25-35 minutes, rinse the crinoline with cool water until the water runs clear.
10. Voila! Hang the crinoline up to dry and you're done!

Tips/Advice:

• Pick a good place to dye your crinoline. I chose the bathtub because I knew that water would more than likely spill out, but keep in mind that mixing the crinoline around for that long, being bent-over or hanging-over the tub REALLY kills your back. Choose wisely!
• I recommend buying sample fabric from your local crafts/fabric store that is the same material that your crinoline is made of. Mine is made of nylon and tulle, so I bought samples of nylon and tulle to see how well the dye would hold the dye.
• Use the hottest water that you can.
  
• Buy good, thick rubber gloves. I bought some from Target that reached mid-forearm. and that were very thick. But when I had to dip my crinoline in further into the water, the water would spill into my gloves, which hurt like hell. So you may want to invest in longer gloves. But make sure they're good enough to sustain high heat and water!

Good luck! If you have any questions, feel free to ask!