Tie dye with your toddler can be tricky but I’m not one to shy away from a craft project for fear of a mess. Starting my toddler off experiencing different art forms is more important than the mess. We went to the Farmer’s Market this past weekend and stopped at a Tie Dye booth swooning over their toddler summer dresses. I caved and bought one for Sophie with a $20 price tag. Thankfully she wants to wear it every day but that was a really hard purchase. She loves the swirly colors in the dress so I thought she’d enjoy making her own tie dye clothes.
There are several different ways to approach tie dye but I’ll be showing you the easiest way to tie dye with your toddler.
Tie Dye With Your Toddler
What you’ll need:
- White clothes, bags, bananas etc. washed and dried
- Tie Dye Kit (I used the Tulip brand bought at Hobby Lobby but it is less expensive on Amazon)
- Paper towels
- Extra rubber gloves
- A wire rack
- Plastic tablecloth
- A nearby hose
Step 1: Rubberband all clothing items. This step will mostly be done by an adult but you can ask your toddler what designs they want on their shirt. For example, I did a Mickey Mouse on my daughter’s shirt per her request.
Step 2: Lay your wire rack on top of a few layers of paper towel. We started on the table but moved to the grass once we saw how much dye gets on the table. I recommend wiping off excess dye between projects to avoid muddling of colors.
Step 3: Put gloves on yourself and your toddler. We used rubberbands to help keep the giant gloves on the kids. If you have kid gloves it would be much easier.
Step 4: Place the white clothing item on the wire rack and show your toddler how to squeeze the bottle on the shirt. I really enjoyed this video on simple swirls and this video on Earth Day shirts.
Step 5: Wrap clothing in plastic wrap or bags and let sit for 6-8 hours.
Step 6: Put on gloves. Rinse clothing in cool water until the water is murky. Remove rubberbands and continue rinsing until water is almost clear.
Step 7: Throw all tie dye items into the washer with a minimal amount of all® free clear detergent. I only use this detergent because it keeps the colors vibrant while still being gentle on my toddler’s sensitive skin.
Step 8: Hang tie dye out in the sun
Step 9: Go out and PLAY!
Do you have any tie dye experience with your kids? What worked best for you? What do you find to be the best way to keep your tie dye colors bright?
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How fun! I’ve never tried tie dye with either of my kids, but have been wanting too. Pinning for an activity for my son’s next track out from year round school. I bet he would love this. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I’m not one to shy away either. 🙂 Thankfully, my kids are right there with me in the sometimes messy crafty parties we through often, just us.
We love to tie dye.
XO
Tie-dye is on our summer bucket list! We’re hoping to squeeze it in soon – only a month to go before it’s back to school time! #client
It’s so easy with the bottles! I hope you’re able to make it happen!