Dying Sofa Covers

[titnomatani]

Has anyone done this using Dylon or any other fabric dye? I've got a beige sofa which is looking a little worse for wear and needs a new lease of life. Having replacement covers made will cost £650 so I'm looking to revive it for a fraction of the cost hopefully. Has anyone done this and have any photos/experience/advice to share? I'm petrified I'll ruin it :(

Are the covers washable? Are they 100% cotton?
If not, then don't.
I've not tried dyeing sofa covers but I have dyed lots of things, usually successfully.
I would wash the covers first. if you haven't washed them before check for shrinkage. You'll need them to be almost dry when you put them back on.
Take them off, weigh them and then follow the instructions to the letter.
I wouldn't go for black or navy, as you run the risk of the results of uneven results.
Let us know how you get on.

Hi Mike, only just seen your message. I've previous sent just the cushion covers to the dry cleaners and tbh not sure what material the covers are. It was an expensive sofa (aren't they all?!) so I'm assuming it's going to be a mix of some sort so I'm worried the Dylon stuff won't stick :/

I want to dye it a bright pink, orange or purple! Have been quoted £650 for new covers but can't afford to splurge like that atm :/

If the covers are cotton or linen they'll dye with a fibre reactive dye such as Procion MX, but be aware that the thread in the seams is almost certainly not cotton/linen even if the fabric is so it'll stay white. That will be a problem if the stitching's visible. Also, dye's transparent so it your covers have any stains the dye won't cover them. They'll just be bright pink, orange or purple stains.

You can buy Procion from several suppliers including Kemtex and George Weil. Weigh your loose covers and buy about 4% of that in dye - so if they weigh 1.5kg you'll need 60g of dye. That'll be enough to get fully saturated colour, so the fabric's holding as many dye molecules as it can, so you won't need to worry that some pieces are going to end up darker than others.

You'll also need cooking salt to help get an even colour, and washing soda to fix the dye. I can't remember quantities but I know Kemtex send out instructions with their dyes.

The Dylon dye for cotton is Procion MX but more expensive and smaller quantities.

Dyeing fabric in the washing machine is very easy and can give great results, so you'll find yourself eyeing sheets and towels next.

Is it worth doing @ThatLibraryMiss? Can I go lighter? Or do dyes just work if going dark? Also, it sounds very complicated- I'm in need of something idiot proof.

Honestly, it's easy. You put the salt into the bottom of the washing machine drum, dye powder on top then the washing soda. Add clean fabric (can be wet from having just been washed, no fabric conditioner please), close the door, run a cycle. Make sure the fabric has plenty of room to move about so you might need to do it in batches.

No, you can't go lighter. You need bleach for that and the results will depend on what dyes are in it already, plus bleach may damage the fabric. Think of the dye as a sheet of colored glass.

If you would throw the covers away otherwise, what did you have to lose? £10 or so for the dyes and chemicals?

The fabric details will be on a label inside the cover, usually by a zip.
Try opening a cushion zip to see if you can find it.
Things like polyester and acrylic won't take dye.

You can probably wash the coversm but they don't look like they need it.

I'd just get a throw.