It depends upon the weight of the item you are dyeing. As a general guideline, one box of powder dye or 4 ounces of liquid dye will colour one pound of dry weight fabric (about 3 yards of lightweight fabric or two adult large t-shirts). To obtain a lighter colour, use less dye. For a darker or brighter colour, double the amount of dye. We recommend at least 1 bottle of Rit All-Purpose Dye or 2 bottles of Rit DyeMore for darker colours. If dyeing 100% polyester, we recommend at least 1 bottle of Rit DyeMore.

You can estimate the weight of the item or use a food or home postal scale. For larger items, such as bedding or curtains, weigh yourself; then weigh yourself holding the item(s). The difference is the weight of the item(s).

What a good question! Rit loves hot water because it loosens the fibres in the fabric to accept the dye. We recommend using the hottest water safe for your fabric. However, if you want specific temperatures, here they are!

• If dyeing natural fabrics (such as cotton, linen, silk or wool), use Rit All-Purpose Dye at 140° to 160°F (60 to 71° C). If tap water is not hot enough, heat water on the stove and add to the dyebath.
  
  
• If dyeing a material that contains more than 35% synthetic material (such as polyester, acrylic or acetate), use Rit DyeMore for Synthetics at 180° to 220°F (82° to 104°C). To do this, you will need to dye with the stovetop method.

It really depends on the desired shade and fabric. To achieve the colour on the box or bottle, we suggest 30 to 60 minutes with continuous stirring. For lighter shades, we suggest 10 to 20 minutes. For 100% polyester and polyester blends, at least 30 minutes is needed for the dye to be absorbed into the fabric, even if fabric appears to have reached the desired shade in less time. Nylon tends to dye very quickly and much darker than other fibres so the actual time needed in the dyebath is much less. Colours always appear darker when wet and will dry lighter. So keep that in mind before removing an item from the dyebath.

If you are dyeing cotton, linen, silk, wool, ramie or rayon, use Rit ColorStay Dye Fixative immediately after dyeing, but before rinsing and laundering.

For all other fibers, rinse the fabric in warm water to gradually cooler water until the water runs clear.

If you are working with cotton, linen, silk, wool or ramie and don’t like the colour, you can remove it using Rit Color Remover. It will bring the fabric to a white or cream colour. Then you can re-dye the garment to another colour!

Unfortunately, Rit Color Remover does not work on synthetic fabrics (such as polyester, acrylic or acetate). However, you could overdye it with a darker colour.

Rit is not a food-grade dye so we do not suggest using a container that is also used for food. However, if you must reuse the container for cooking, it is recommended to clean the container with chlorine bleach or a powdered cleanser after dyeing.

Our time-tested dye formulas are a combination of various acid, disperse and direct dyes, along with sodium chloride. These various dye classes are used so that you can dye a wide variety of fabrics and materials. Our dyes are also non-toxic, as determined by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

If you have never used dye in a washing machine, we get why you would be nervous! Who wants a purple washing machine? Well, maybe us. Nonetheless, we can promise you Rit won’t permanently stain any metal component on your machine. Rit has been used in washing machines for decades, dating back to the time when the electric washing machine was invented in the 1950s. We coined the phrase “Push Button Color!” We do recommend, however, that you do clean up immediately after dyeing to ensure none of the plastic parts on your washer are stained. Wipe around the inside of the lid and pour a little bleach through the internal dispenser (if there is one) as dyes can get into these areas. Then, fill washer to the highest water level there is and select the hottest water temperature setting. Add detergent with 2 cups of chlorine bleach and run a full wash cycle with 3 old towels.