Introduction


"All Purpose" Dye is a hot water dye containing all mixture of dyes which may work on different kind of fabric & yarn. Although the characteristics of these are not well on any of them but used in a situation when another kind of dye would perform better. These are the high qualities dyes which people could use in many of their usual applications. "All Purpose" dye is mixture of Acid dye (of the acid leveling type), for dyeing wool and other animal fiber, as well as nylon and Direct dye for dyeing cellulose fibers such as cotton, rayon, linen etc but these cant be used to dye polyester or acrylic.


These are more useful when coloring a blend of protein fiber with a cellulose fiber& can be dyed with approximately the same color at same time. These can further be illustrated by some examples like linsey-woolsey, any cotton or rayon garment with nylon lace trim. The disadvantage of using these both type of dyes are their poor adhesion property which may lead to bleed and fade during laundry which can further be improved by using commercial dye fixative.Another disadvantage is their wastage when used on a pure fiber of any sort or mixture of pure fibers with undyeable synthetics like polyester or acrylic asacid or direct dye would not be adhere properly on pure cotton & wool or nylon respectively after several washes which ends up finally to drain resulting nothing but the wastage of money. It is preferable to use pure direct dye if you are dyeing cotton & pure acid dye to dye wool or nylon. Thirdly,these mixtures of dyes are prepared after using huge amount of salt which make the final package unnecessarily appears to contain more stuff than it actual does. These are of course help to dye solid colors but cause problems during specialized dyeing technique in which dye is painted on material.


Popular Brands: These are sold in the market with the following listed brands name:


  • Rit�brand
  • Dylon�Multi Purpose Dyes
  • DEKA L� Hot water dyes
  • Tintex� Fabric Dyes


How much it is safer to use?


Now the question come, is all purpose dye safer to use? Yes it is safer to use under some appropriate precautions as listed below:


  • Don't get the dye on the skin & use appropriate gloves during handling it
  • Don't allow it to splash into your eyes. Hence it is recommended to use safety glasses
  • Wash your hands with utmost care after handling these stuff & don't use chlorine bleach on your skin
  • Prevent eating & smoking while using these dyes
  • Don't use the same cooking pot which you have already used for dyeing
  • Don't allow it use for children & adults should always supervise children closely while they are using it.


 

Conclusion


It is suggested to use all purpose dye for a single step to dye a garment that is a mixture of cellulosic fibers such as cotton or rayon with either wool, another animal fiber or nylon. Otherwise, whenever possible, avoid all purpose dye in favor of specific acid or acid or fiber reactive dye. Please also follow the manufacturer's instructions carefully for using any type of dye to avoid any mishappenings & wastage in future. Please don't use cold water dye recipes for hot water dyes such as those contained in all purpose dye.


References:


1.      http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/allpurposedye.shtml

2.      http://www.pburch.net/drupal/?q=taxonomy/term/42

3.      http://www.dyescolours.com/direct-dyes.html

4.      http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/allpurposesafety.shtml

5.      http://www.hand-dyedfibers.com/oscnuked/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=24

6.      http://ffxiv.zam.com/en/item/10010720/All-purpose-Yellow-Dye