Experiments in Fabric Dyeing

I had a bride request me to make her a bag like this one which is in my shop banner.
Well, this bag was a one of a kind bag, so I couldn't do the same thing again, but I was able to customize it for her wedding colors. She asked me if I could make this bag in yellow. Well, truthfully, this fabric only comes in white. But I didn't let that stop me. I said, "Sure!" I ordered more, picked up some fabric dye, and proceeded to try my hand at dyeing fabrics for the first time.

I used my washing machine and RIT dye. I've heard that RIT dye doesn't do vibrant colors very well, but the bride wants pastel yellow, so I figured it wouldn't be a problem. I was worried it would dye too dark, so my backup was to use tea to lighten the color if necessary. I've seen other people do that.

Well, the first watch ended up quite dark. Definitely not pastel! So I decided to only use a capful of dye with the second piece of fabric. Much better!

And to see the difference:

The bride's colors are yellow and gray, so we picked out a flower together on Etsy. My expertise with flowers consists of circles of fabric with singed edges and a button on top, so I thought we'd pick up something more fun.

It's not the finished product, but I think this gives a good idea of what the purse will look like. I'm definitely happy with it! And this opens the door to other personalized purses.