Ice Dyeing an Alien Spine T-Shirt

I learned how to do the “Alien Spine” design from another tie-dyer on KZbin, Casual Collisions. He's got some great tutorials, and you can view his channel here:
/ casualcollisions
I’ve made a few of these shirts using different colors so I thought that for these two, I’d show the entire process from start to finish.
#kalmtiedyes #alienspine #icedye #tiedye

[@SpaceCaptainCreations]

Love these shirts, very good job on the tie. Now I want to do these again. I stepped away from ice for a minute but this shows me why I love it so much. ✌🏻❤️

[@KALMTieDyes]

Yeah ice dyeing was a game changer for me!!

[@debbiehatton7141]

Great job! Love the color coordination.

[@KALMTieDyes]

Thanks so much!!

[@Kristen-eo5cn]

Great job o love the shirt u are wearing in video. Very pretty

[@BelladonnaDyesCo]

Yes, I watched this with my husband. He showed me this shirt a week or so ago. Very nice! ❤️🌈

[@KALMTieDyes]

Yes, I believe he asked me a question about the incline. 😊

[@timdavis9031]

Great job!!! The mandalas are beautiful! Wien blue alien spine T-shirt was a fantastic job of that pattern. I have seen others because I’ve been watching a lot of videos from different people and that one that you did with the blues is the best I’ve seen of that pattern.

[@KALMTieDyes]

Awww, thanks!! I appreciate the compliment y so much!

[@cathyursulacomrack5653]

hi calm dyes please do more videos. i have seen 3 and adored them. Pleasee

[@KALMTieDyes]

Thanks so much! You are very sweet. I’ll be making more videos in 2023!! ✌🏻❤️😊

[@heidivela1567]

I really love doing the alien spine. Both of yours turned out AWESOME

[@KALMTieDyes]

Thank you! It’s a fun design, especially with ice dyeing.

[@junttivision7743]

Beautiful🤯

[@KALMTieDyes]

Thanks!

[@dianaj1524]

This is a super high quality video. Thanks for making it.

[@KALMTieDyes]

Thanks so much! I’m glad you enjoyed it. 😊

[@kimkemeys9563]

Very cool looking. I need to try this. Have you done this on a sweat shirt? I'm gonna try this today on a sweat shirt. Thanks for sharing.

[@KALMTieDyes]

I’ve not done this on a sweatshirt. Good luck and please come back and let me know how it turns out!!

[@kimkemeys9563]

Very cool. I love how every piece is different. Its a great art form.

[@KALMTieDyes]

Yes, each one is unique in its own way!! I often get people who send me a photo of one of my shirts and ask, “Can you make me this one in a different size?” and I always tell them the same thing...I can make one with the same folds and using the same colors, so it will be similar, but it won’t be exactly the same.” That’s the nature of tie dye...no two shirts are ever exactly the same!! When you get a genuine tie-dyed piece of clothing, you can be sure that you will have a one-of-a-kind piece of wearable art. ✌🏻♥️😊

[@chrisstrojny990]

Dope shirts

[@KALMTieDyes]

Thanks so much!

[@dclassiter2005]

They both look great. Did you have the rack on an incline at all?

[@KALMTieDyes]

I have the rack flat on top of the bin while I’m applying the dye powder and the ice. Once that’s done, I set one end of the rack down into the bin, with the other end of the rack extended out past the other end of the bin, causing it to sit on an incline. The neckline (top) of the shirt is at the higher end of the incline. This is also where the center line is. I keep it this way until it’s done batching...so right up until I rinse it out.

[@elleryflynn6106]

Do you have a list of colors that tend to split more than others?

[@lully381]

I have not heard of soda ash before until watching You Tube Tutorials, does it help keep the vibrancy of the dye? I love tie dying but always after washing the colours seem muted and very pastel in shade. I love this pattern and will definately be having a go on my next tie dye project, thank you for showing it.

[@KALMTieDyes]

Hi there!! Whenever you’re dyeing natural fibers, such as cotton, hemp or rayon, and dyeing with fiber-reactive dyes, the fabric needs to be pre-washed to remove any chemicals or oils from the fabric that may be left over from the manufacturer. Then the fabric needs to be prepped by soaking in a soda ash solution prior to dyeing. This is what creates the chemical magic and allows the bond to dye with the fabric. Most tie dye kits come with a small packet of soda ash for this reason. I’ve heard that in some kits, the soda ash is mixed in with they dye powder, and pre-soaking isn’t necessary. I’ve never used such a kit. There are methods of tie dyeing where the soda ash is mixed with the fiber-reactive dye powder, and this is said to eliminate the need for a pre-soak in soda ash, but I’ve not tried these methods. If your projects are coming out looking faded or pastel, it is likely because you didn’t pre-soak with soda ash, you’re not using fiber-reactive dyes, or you fabric isn’t 100% natural fibers. I hope that helps! Happy tie dyeing!!

[@lully381]

@@KALMTieDyes Thank you for your help, I think it is this useage of soda ash beforehand that may be the issue here. I have never done this, or have I even heard of such a thing, Perhaps soda crystals, is the closest I have heard of, but I intend to find some and do more research now. My tee shirts were 100% cotton, they were pre-washed as well. In the past, I have used a packet dye that you mix with water and an amount of salt to do my tie dying, and the same thing, it is always lighter when washed. This time round I treated myself to a kit with the different coloured dyes in the bottle ready to mix with water and nothing else. The colours are lovely and vibrant when applied, but fade when washed. Thank you so much for your help in this matter, I obviously need to do some reserach into soda ash ot whatever the UK equivalent is!

[@lucindawelenc2191]

@@lully381 do you have a product called washing soda? That's the same thing as soda ash. The chemical name is sodium carbonate; it's also used in swimming pools as a PH balancer. Amazon carries it.

[@lully381]

@@lucindawelenc2191 Thanks Lucinda

[@Bobby_TheHammer]

So they looked flat and at the sneak peek they looked like they were at an incline. Could you explain why? How long do you incline them? Is the incline at the center fold or the armpit side? I’m so confused. Thanks.

[@KALMTieDyes]

I have the rack flat on top of the bin while I’m applying the dye powder and the ice. Once that’s done, I set one end of the rack down into the bin, with the other end of the rack extended out past the other end of the bin, causing it to sit on an incline. The neckline (top) of the shirt is at the higher end of the incline. This is also where the center line is. I keep it this way until it’s done batching...so right up until I rinse it out.

[@Bobby_TheHammer]

@@KALMTieDyes Thank you for explaining. I really appreciate it!

[@cathyursulacomrack5653]

please tell me how to do the foil

[@KALMTieDyes]

I’m sorry, I don’t know what you mean.

[@plasticflamingo8742]

Hello! Why is it important to use the string to tie it up instead of just the rubber bands?

[@KALMTieDyes]

Hi, there! Rubber bands are fine as well. I just find the string much easier to use than rubber bands. With the kite string I have more control over the tension of the ties. With rubber bands, the tension of the tie is more dependent on the size of the rubber band. ☮️

[@plasticflamingo8742]

@@KALMTieDyes thank you for your reply!

[@rommelopilas715]

I want to see the backside.thanks

[@KALMTieDyes]

Unfortunately, I can’t post a photo of the back in the comments, but it looks the same. :)