Acid or fiber reactive dyes?

[nemi]

Wow, what a great forum, I am so happy to have found it! I wondered if any of you talented moms could please help me:

I´m going to dye some playsilks, but I´m not sure which dyes to use. I have searched all kinds of dyeing-pages on the net, but there is so many different answers to the same questions, it´s hard to tell what´s right...

My question is: Should I use acid dyes or fiber reactive dyes to dye playsilks? I want colors that are bright and washfast. And of course, being able to do cold water dyeing or low water immersion would be great... What type of dye would be the best choice, and what brand?

(And in case you wondered, English is my second language...I hope this is understandable )

[ma2maya]

I would suggest using fiber reactive dyes for the versatility of what you want to do. Acid dyes are ideal for silk painting and precise coloring but fiber reactive dyes work wonderfully too. They are what I use on my silk.
Additionally, you can use them as an acid dye or a fiber reactive dye just depends whether you use an acid or soda ash.


Kathy

[nemi]

Originally Posted by ma2maya

I would suggest using fiber reactive dyes for the versatility of what you want to do. Acid dyes are ideal for silk painting and precise coloring but fiber reactive dyes work wonderfully too. They are what I use on my silk.
Additionally, you can use them as an acid dye or a fiber reactive dye just depends whether you use an acid or soda ash.


Kathy

Thank you, Kathy! I think I will try the fiber reactive dyes first. Are there brands that are better than others, or are they basically the same quality?

(By the way, I love your links - both your store and the tie-dye forum )

[ma2maya]

I buy my dyes from Pro Chemical and Dye but you can also get your dyes from Dharma. They carry the Jacquard line of fiber reactive dyes. Both are good quality. Prochem is on the east coast and Dharma is on the west coast so that could be a consideration.

Kathy

[nemi]

Originally Posted by ma2maya

I buy my dyes from Pro Chemical and Dye but you can also get your dyes from Dharma. They carry the Jacquard line of fiber reactive dyes. Both are good quality. Prochem is on the east coast and Dharma is on the west coast so that could be a consideration.

Kathy

I can´t buy from Dharma as they only ship in the US - too bad, because they have so much great stuff! But I found a webstore in the UK that sells Jacquard, so I have bought a small set to try it out. Can´t wait to get started!

[ma2maya]

Yes, FibreCrafts is a good European source. If I had known thats who I would have recomended.

Kathy