Painting with idye poly

[rquinn21]

I want to start painting with idye poly and I plan on using free and clear detergent as a base. I'm pretty sure this has been done before but I need to know, what ratios do you use to mix with the dye powder?

I've got 1 cup mason jars to store them and my initial thought is to cut open the dye packets and mix it straight into about a cup of the detergent. I was thinking maybe mix the powder with as little detergent as possible to dissolve it and then increase the volume to a sufficient quantity.

Has anyone done this? Is it a better idea to dissolve it in water before mixing with the detergent? I'd rather do it right the first time so any thoughts are welcome.

 

[Eky8]

I don't use idye poly. I still use rit. However my experience is that you want the dye to be as thick as you can reasonably make it. I dissolve the dye in a small 4oz. cup. (Ziplock or glad cups from walmart.) I pour just enough detergent in the cup to cover the dye. Then mix it up and let it sit. I paint with the detergent that has risen to the top after the dye has settled. I store my mix in these cups and reuse it whenever I do another dye. I have been using the same mix for well over a year. If you use too much detergent it gets pretty runny and is more difficult to paint with in my experience. I paint with the detergent then let it sit for several hours in a sealed container with a moist paper towel to keep the dye moist. You don't want it too wet or it will run.

 

[rquinn21]

How much of the powdered dye do you use?

 

[Garryjercia]

No acetone or alcohol? Good to know. Thanks

 

[Kodachrome]

if i'm in a hurry, just a note, you can float your disc in a pan of hot water and it will set a helluva lot faster. useful when you just want a solid color; i do that instead of dipping since it's cleaner and a lot easier for me. just don't do it for the edges, obviously.

 

[Eky8]

I don't use acetone or alcohol. Both of those speed the dye process by opening the pores of the plastic. Which is what heat does as well. I used to put my dyes in a pan of hot water to speed the process, But I felt like it caused me more problems than it helped. Many of the people who are doing a more art like dye such as DyingToPlay and dischyzer use acetone because it allows them to treat it more like paint getting almost instant results from the dye. Allowing a much higher ability to do shading and fine details. I don't paint like that. I am using the painting process to do multi-colors instead of remasking and redipping.

rquinn21: You can use as much of the dye as you want just add detergent based on how much you put in. Try to keep the mix fairly thick.

 

[dischyzer]

Thanks for that information Eky8. I am going to try that style of dyeing. The idea of a damp cloth and sealed up makes sense to allow longer dyeing. I was wondering about that because it seems to take forever without alcohol.

On that note I will try various methods to heat the disc and dye(when water based). You are right about the immediate effects of acetone and alcohol. It's taken some practice because the dye reacts differently in terms of how it wants to spread out. So I have practiced with different mixtures of alcohol, acetone, and mineral spirits. Also a little detergent to allow painting without the spread action.

As an artist, I am used to quick results, watercolor, acrylic, oils, pencils, etc. I don't have to wait to see if the result is good or what I am looking for. So it will be a challenge to paint a disc and wait. But it will be worth the effort. I really like the Indian Portrait you dyed, really a great result.

 

[Eky8]

As a side note, I actually let the dye dry on the disc before I put it in the container because if it absorbs too much moisture it has a tendency to run. If I put it in already wet it seems to absorb too much moisture before I get the color I want. I've been playing around quite a bit with getting different shades out of a color. I prefer to use star type plastics. I can tell you star takes the dye significantly faster than a gold line does. I hate working with discraft plastic. Mostly because I hate their stamps. But esp seems similar to star. Champ type plastics take much much longer.

 

[rquinn21]

Thanks for the advice Eky8