DIY: Dip-Dye Tote

This weekend, little sis and I thought perhaps we were a bit young to dye Easter eggs.
So, instead, we lugged some materials out to the patio to try our hand at a dip-dye tote. Sorry, Easter bunny.

Materials:
Canvas tote
Fabric dye. We used Rit liquid dye and it worked great.
Containers to dip in. If you want a deep dip-dye, the larger the container, the better.

First, fold the bag into thirds, with the middle portion of the front facing you (like you fold a t-shirt). This allows you to see the line of where you are dipping without the dyed water gathering in the bottom of your bag, causing a big ole mess.

I apologize for the shabby iPhone pics, but I was too paranoid to take my camera outside around multiple bottles of permanent dye.

Next, fill your container with water (hot or cold, depending on the dye's instructions) and a tablespoon of salt. Then add the dye, with a heavy hand if you want your color to be extra saturated, and lightly if you are looking for more of a pastel. I filled mine about two-thirds of the way for the first dip, then added the rest of the bottle's contents to dip a thin, darker dip around the bottom of the bag a second time.
Mark where you'd like the dip-dye line to be with a pencil (or just eye it, as I did) and dip the bag into the dye, holding for at least two-minutes.

If you'd like a darker color, keep the bag submerged for longer. When satisfied, pull the bag out of the dye allowing the access to drip off. Then, hang to dry. The dye will continue to drizzle through the fabric (hence, drip dye), so make sure to hang the bag somewhere outdoors. 

After the dye has finished dripping and begun to dry, you can add more color to the containers and dip again if you wish it to be darker, or dip a small portion of the bottom if you would like more of an hombre effect. To finish, rinse the bags (with nozzle facing down to continue the dripping effect) with cold water until the water runs clear. Then, throw in the wash with detergent and a little more salt on cold water and wash delicately—one at a time, if you have done multiple, so the colors don't bleed onto one another. Run an iron over to smooth out wrinkles as your last step.
I snapped a shot of my new turquoise dip-dyed tote on my way out the door Monday morning for a photo shoot—my new satchel was just perfect for shot lists, model releases, and all that other extra garb I had to lug around.

So simple, so easy, and so cute (no thanks to my terrible photo above). And at about $4 to make, I'll take it.
Happy Wednesday! xx