As I have mentioned in the forums before, the skin tone zentai which I wear during kigurumi cosplay tends to fade in colour after every wash. It is an inevitable problem which can only be resolved by dyeing the zentai back to its former glory. I have dyed my skin tone zentai for the first time with satisfactory results so I decidedto write a process report which may help english speaking kigurumi or zentai cosplayer to do the same.
The first problem is the choice of dye to use. After a short searching process, the suitable dye for zentai was found. It is the only dye commonly available at most places in the world. So seldom have I heard of another company making dyes, I think this dye has monopoly. Yes, its DYLON. Saw only one other brand but their variety is far limited compared to DYLON's, and the other brand does not have dye suitable for synthetic materials which the zentai is made of. DYLON has 3 mainstream types of dye available off the shelf. Well at least the store I visited has only these 3 mainstream brands. Firstly, there is this dye which comes in a box called "DYLON Colourfast Dye". Then I saw the "DYLON Hot Water Dye" and lastly a "DYLON Cold Water Dye". The ONLY dye suitable for dying zentai materias, which is spandex, nylon as well as other women's stretchable garments is the "DYLON HOT WATER DYE". Only this dye will work on zentai, spandex, corsets, bras, garters etc.
Then after know which dye to go for, the next task will be the choosing of colour. Pick the colour you think which will come closest to the final zentai tone you want. For me I chose Rose of Paris, colour code 12, as shown below.
Dylon Rose of Paris colour code 12 hot water dye is pinkish, just what I need to give my light orange zentai a hint of pink.
The choice of colour really depends on your available options, imagination and expectations. I wanted a slight tinge of pink to my zentai so I bought the "Rose of Paris" coloured dye. ATTENTION, YOUR FINAL COLOUR IN MIND IS VERY IMPORTANT. FOR EXAMPLE, ROSE OF PARIS WILL MAKE MY ZENTAI PINK, WHICH IS TERRIBLE. USING 1/4 OF THE DYE WILL GIVE A VERY LIGHT PINK AND THAT IS WHAT I MEAN BY HAVING THE FINAL COLOUR IN MIND. DO NOT EMPTY THE WHOLE CONTAINER OF DYE INTO THE WATER EVEN IF IT SAYS SO UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING.
Another way to obtain the colour you want is by mixing colours together. If you want an orangy peachy colour, you can try a mixture of pink and yellow if the colour you want is not already available. This is also what I did.
Mixing pink and yellow in the right portions gives you peach^_^
It will be easy if you do not need to control the tone of the dye, but since I need to I only use 1/4 of the dye powder inside the container. Anymore will turn my zentai pink and ruin the zentai terribly. Next, prepare really hot water, boiling off the stove or right off the kettle. The water must be deep enough for the whole zentai to submerge into the water. Mix the water with about 3-4 soup spoon of salt. NOTE: THE INSTRUCTIONS ON THE DYE WILL WORK AS WELL, I USED THEIR INSTRUCTIONS AND I'M JUST TALKING ABOUT WHAT I DID EXACTLY.
The pail contains really hot boiling water right off the kettle, you need really hot water for this one.
After pouring the salt and dye into the hot water, STIR WELL until the colour and salt have mixed well into one homogeous coloured water. DO NOT THROW IN YOUR ZENTAI IF YOU HAVE NOT STIRRED THE COLOUR COMPLETELY EVEN WITH THE WATER OR YOUR DYEING WILL BE UNEVEN.
The colou have to be well stirred before putting in the zentai or the dyeing will be uneven.
One important thing to note BEFORE throwing in the zentai is that the zentai MUST BE WET. Wash it thoroughly under a tap or if it is dirty, use detergent and clean it before dyeing. Make sure that it is clean before dyeing and leave it damp when you are about to put the zentai into the dye. If the above criteria are met, just put the zentai in to the dye as shown below.
Zentai in dye looks almost like a pail of fresh meat >_<
Do all the adding of salt, adding of dye powder and stirring quickly as soon as the hot water is poured into the pail. The hotter the water is, the better will the dyeing result be and the easier it is to dye. Once the zentai is in, stir the zentai and toss it about in the dye to ensure that the dye seeps into every corner of the zentai. Keep stiring and rolling the zentai in the dye for about 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, leave the zentai submerged and stir again every 10 minutes. Keep doing so for a total of 1 hour and the zentai should be thorougly dyed.
The thorougly dyed zentai before extracting from the pail of dye.
Pour away the dye and rinse the zentai until tap water until the water runs clear. Squeeze the zentai with your hands and rince until no more excess dye remains on the zentai. Then hang the zentai dry uncrumpled. Make sure that the zentai is not wrinkled up when you dry your zentai or it may leave marks on the zentai. Once it is dried, your zentai should look fresh and new again and wearing it will give your skin a painted look.
END