Refashion by Dyeing: Archer Button Up

Three years ago I found four meters of a light yellow cotton flannel in a fabric store. It was a bargain and felt really nice. A few months later, in March 2020, I made an Archer Button-up by Grainline Studio. It was my first classic shirt with all the traditional details and a sewing big success in my sewing journey.

However, after the first few times of wearing the shirt, I stopped reaching for it in my wardrobe. I also didn't use the leftover yardage for other projects, even though the fabric would have been a suitable choice for several projects. Quite a while later I realised that my issue with the garment was the colour. While it seemed like it was neutral enough to fit my preferred colour palette, it just looked too yellow. Or not yellow enough.

Years later in order to get the most out of the garments in my closet and the fabric in my fabric stash, and in the spirit of "reduce, reuse, recycle", I decided to refashion the shirt by dying it. I bought a big secondhand pot solely for dyeing and a packet of black dye from my local supermarket. I won't mention the brand, since there are probably more sustainable options out there, including natural dying, but you will find fabric dye in almost any larger shop. Using the instructions that came with the dye, the dying process was really easy. The colour resulted in a very dark blue (it doesn't seem quite black, more like Pantone "cool black") which I am very happy with and I am confident will be worn much more often than the light yellow shirt it used to be!

If this has inspired anyone to dye some of their clothes and get more wear out of them, there are a few things that need to be mentioned.

• Most dyes only work on natural fibres. Cotton, linen, wool etc. will take to the dye well, while synthetic fibres, such as polyester, cannot be dyed with most dyes.

• Furthermore, as was the case with my Archer Button Up, while the fabric might be cotton, the thread used is often polyester. Therefore, my dyed garment now has contrasting white topstitching, which I actually find gives it more interest. However, if you are making a garment with the intention of dyeing it, consider using cotton thread instead of all-purpose polyester thread.

• Some dyes can be harmful to the environment. You might want to take this into consideration when deciding to dye a garment and which dye to use.

• Not all colours are feasible. Depending on how dark the original colour is, the pigments might not be strong enough to change the colour entirely. The lighter the original colour is and the darker the dye colour the closer you will get to the desired result. Also, if the fabric has a pattern it might still be visible even though the colours of the fabric have changed.

Maybe this refashion project will inspire you to dye some of your garments. It is a great option for colours that you don't like anymore, faded colours or stained garments. Let me know about your garment dyeing projects!