Dyeing foam & fabric problem

[biblebetty]

Hi everyone.
have a big problem! when I dye foam or fabric how do I keep it from floating to the top. if it does it does not dye evenly. if I put a rock or something heavy or use a broom handle to hold it down there is a white spot or light spot where it won't dye well. Do you have any Ideas how i can keep the foam or fabric submerged?

 

[Buck-Beaver]

I've always wondered about this too actually; I have used small weights but you have to be careful doing that because the fabric under the weights may not dye correctly.

 

[Blink]

Try having the foam pre-soaked in hot water to make sure that there are no air pockets in the foam. I work all the bubbles out with the foam submerged in a tub of clear water.

You should find that not only does the foam "not float", but the dye solution is able to soak all the way through for even colour.

 

[biblebetty]

well that makes sense, i'll take a shot at that. thank-you

 

[TheCreatureWork]

Hey

I sent you a link for this question at... ahem...PuppetHub

 

[MGov]

Buy rubber gloves and hold the foam or fabric in the dye bath, regularly agitating it, letting it float up a little, pushing it down, moving it around to get the dye bath to flow over the whole thing.

I do this every time and never have an uneven dye job.

 

[biblebetty]

Creatureworks thanks for the link, it helped alot,
McGov how long do you do this for. I like to leave the foam or fabric over night. I get a nice dark beautiful color!

Buck what kind of weights do you use? where do you put them on the fabric or foam?

 

[Buck-Beaver]

They were small Mexican weights that I picked up for my workshop when I lived down there (so they were probably made of lead and highly toxic ). There were four of them, each one about the size of a large cherry, but flat on the bottom. I would put one on each corner of whatever I was floating to help hold it down.

I have them packed away, otherwise I would take a photo.