Appreciation post: My friend's old denim jacket from 2015 looked totally different after she dyed it with black tea for 6 hours.

The faded blue went to this soft, warm brown that made the whole piece feel vintage and expensive, not just worn out, so has anyone tried a natural dye on something they were about to toss?

3 comments

3 Comments

abbyr961mo ago

Aw man, I gotta push back a little on that! I get where @blair_davis is coming from because I had a shirt do the exact same thing the first time I tried it, patchy and sad. But I think the trick is the prep work, I did an avocado pit dye on an old white tee and it came out this peachy pink that held for like eight months before it started to fade. I soaked it in a vinegar and salt bath first for two hours, then rinsed it in cold water, and I let it dry in the shade for a whole day before I even wore it. Your friend's jacket sounds awesome, and I bet if she did the vinegar soak and let it cure properly, that tea color would stick around way longer than people give it credit for.

price.tyler2mo ago

My buddy tried the coffee ground method on some canvas pants, got a nice sepia tone that actually stuck. He did a vinegar soak first, which @blair_davis might have missed? The key was letting it cure for a full day before even thinking about washing.

blair_davis2mo ago

That tea dye trick looks cool in photos but it never lasts. Tried it on a cotton shirt and it washed right out after two cycles. Ended up looking patchy and weird, not vintage. Natural dyes are fun for a craft project but they aren't a real fix for worn out clothes. You're better off just buying a piece that's actually made to be that color.