Fabric Dyeing

Dyeing is the process of imparting colour to the garment. The

source of colour are natural( Plant and animal) or chemical.
Dyes obtained from natural sources are called natural dyes and
chemical dyes are called synthetic dyes.
Method of dyeing --- there are two ways of colouring:
aqueous dyeing and pigment dyeing. In aqueous dyeing, the
material is mixed with water, dyestuff and other chemicals. This
set is called dye bath ( material, water, dyestuff, and chemical).
Pigments are microscopic size insoluble colour particles which
are adhered to the fabric surface.

Dyeing at different stages --A. Stock dyeing Dyeing of fibres is called stock dyeing.
Fibres are dyed and then spun into yarn. Fibre are put into
a machine called vat dyeing machine.
For producing worsted fabric garments, the fibres are
converted to sliver and then dyed. This is called top
dyeing. This is a variation of stock dyeing. It is done to
minimize the wastage of the fibre.
Stock dyeing is costly due to high wastage and slow
rate of production.
Stock dyeing has greater penetration.
It involves business risk due to colour change with
fashion themes.
It is mostly used when melange or heather like fabric
are to be produced. Harris tweed is an example of
stock dyeing.
B. Yarn dyeing It is dying at the yarn stage. It is done
three ways:
Skein dyeing --- yarns skeins or hanks are dipped
in the dye bath. It is used in case of soft knitting
yarns. Yarn hanks are placed on special frame. The
frame is lowered and dipped in the dye bath. This
process is repeated to complete the dyeing
process.

 Package dyeingthe yarns are wound around a

perforated spools called package. Many such spools
are placed in the package dyeing machine. The
spools are supplied with dyestuff the dyestuff
alternates its flow form centre to the edge and from
the edge to the centre. This type of dyeing does not
retain the softness as in case of skein dyeing
Beam dying it has a large perforate beam on which
large quantity of yarn is wound. The beam is then placed
in the machine. the flow of dye stuff is same as in the
package dyeing machine. It is most economical than the
other two methods.
Yarn dyeing is less costly than stock dyeing and top
dyeing. It is used in case of checks, stripes, plaids,
ginghams etc.
C. Piece dyeing --- it is the dyeing of cloth piece. The
various methods used are :
a. Winch dyeing also known as beck dyeing or box
dyeing. The fabric pieces are sewn end to end. The
rope like fabric fabric is then dyed in a relaxed
manner. This method is used for knitted, woollen and
worsted fabric. There is no tension is applied on the
fabric so the fabric retains its shape and handfeel.
b. Jet dyeing --- in this method, the fabric to be dyed is
agitated on the jet flow if the dye bath. Jet dyeing
involves much less use of water and due stuff and
has much shorter cycle time.
c. Jig Dyeing the fabric passes form one reel to the
dye bath and then to another reel. Fabric is not
relaxed but subject to stress while in open width. Jig
dyeing is done where soft hand is not required and
fabric can withstand tension. Jig dyeing is vulnerable
to centre to selvage shade variation or shade
variation form one end to another. Shade variation
may happen due to differential tension in the fabric.
d. Pad dyeing --- in this, the fabric passes through the
guide roller then through the dye pad in the dye
bath, finally it is passed through the pressure rollers
where it is squeezed and excess dye is removed. This
method also puts fabric under tension which results

in the loss of hand feel of the fabric. Pad dyeing is

the only method by which pigment colouring can be
done in a fabric. Pad dyeing is a continuous process
in which continuous length of the fabric passes
through the dye bath and then it is heated and
washed and rinsed to set the dye.
e. Beam dyeing--- beam dyeing of fabric is same as
beam dyeing of the yarns. Fabric with open
construction are dyed by this method so that the
penetration of the dye stuff is good. Beam dyeing
does not put tension on the garment. Tricot fabrics
are most frequently dyed by this method.
The piece dyeing method is less costly then the yarn or fibre
dyeing method. It is done for solid colour garments. The fashion
risk involved is much less because it is done close to the time
of sale of the fabric.
The penetration of the dyestuff in piece dyeing will be less if
the fabric has dense construction or the yarn used is twisted.
Low dye penetration may result in poor fastness after some
washes. This is the reason why high value garments and
draperies are yarn dyed even for solid colour.
D. Garment dyeing --- the non tailored variety of garments (
garments such as hosiery in which only one type of fabric
is used) can also be dyed as a sewn product. This dyeing
at the garment stage is called garment dyeing. Tailored
items( Suits and dresses) can not be garment dyed
because it has different type of fabrics in it which will have
different shrinkage and hence the product will be
deformed. The machine used for garment dyeing is called
Paddle dyeing machine. The loosely packed garments are
kept in a nylon net bag and placed in the dye bath in the
paddle dyeing machine.
This dyeing involves minimum fashion as it is closest to
the time of sale. And allows for quick response to
changing fashion ( Zara example)
For any garment dyeing program, the shrinkage allowance
must done at the time of making the pattern of the

garment so that appropriate size of the garment may be

achieved after dyeing.
Solution dyeing --- This is imparting colour to the filament
fibre at the solution stage. The required colour is mixed with
the fibre forming substance of the filament before being
extruded through the spinnerette. Due to production related
constraints, solution dyeing can be done in limited colours only.
This gives excellent colour fastness and the fabric becomes
almost fade proof. It is done where excellent fastness is
required even after prolonged use. Gas fading problem of
acrylic can be removed by solution dyeing.