DIY Tie Dye T-Shirt With Pearls

Tools and materials:

• White t-shirt
• Dyes (made up of dye powder, salt, and water)
• Rubber gloves
• String
• Paintbrush
• Plastic bag
• Pearl patch
• Pearls
• Needle
• Thread

Prepare the top

Start by wetting the t-shirt, damp shirts are easier to tie-dye, and they also help to dilute the dyes a little. Then spread the shirt on a flat surface.

Dye the upper part

Start by dyeing the top part of your t-shirt. To make the dyes, you need to combine two teaspoons of dye powder, one teaspoon of salt, and some water. I like light, pastel colors, so I went for a lovely light blue. I recommend wearing rubber gloves so that your hands don’t get covered in dye.

Tie up and dye the bottom part

Once you’ve done this, you need to wrinkle up the bottom part of the top and wrap it up with a string. While rubber bands would also work, I like the unique look that the strands of string leave on the t-shirt. Now it is time to dye the bottom. To do this, dip a paintbrush in the dye and splatter it onto the tied-up t-shirt. You also want to dye the ends of the sleeves as well as the collar. 

Leave to dry and wash out

When done, leave the t-shirt to dry in a plastic bag for a few hours or overnight. When ready, remove the string and wash the t-shirt at 30 degrees and dry it out. 

Embellish the collar

The last step is to embellish the collar. I quite like pearls, and I found this pearl patch that will fit the design perfectly. If you can’t find a pearl patch though, then you can go for something different. Hand stitch it on and then proceed to stitch on all the pearls along the collar. 

Here is the finished look; I’m really happy with how it turned out. The pearl neckline is such a unique feature and it glistens in the sunlight. The tie-dye look is perfect for the summer and days spent relaxing on the beach. I think that it’s absolutely gorgeous.