If you want to replace aged pillows which are still in great shape, then consider dyeing them. An inexpensive package of dye in any colour of your choice, as well as a little investment of time, can transform your pillows and give them a new look. This small change can do wonders to refresh the decor of an entire seating room or area.
Take the fabric covers the pillows off. If your pillow covers don’t have zippers or a different sort of closure, unpick a small section of one of the seams with a seam ripper or embroidery scissors. Put aside the pillow kind or stuffing for today.
Pour 2 cups of water into a saucepan and bring it to a boil on your stove top. Move the boiling water into a plastic bucket, put on rubber gloves, and include dye from the package according to the manufacturer’s directions. Stir the solution with an aged wooden spoon until the dye is completely dissolved in the water.
Run the hot water until it is as hot as it can get, then add more warm water into the bucket to get the quantity of wax solution recommended by the manufacturer.
Plunge the pillow covers into the bucket and thrust them into the dye solution with the wooden spoon until they are fully submerged. Catch the covers to soak in the dye bath for about five minutes.
Stir in 1 cup of salt or 1 cup of white vinegar into the wax solution, based on the fabric content of your pillow covers. Use salt for cotton, cotton or rayon fabric, or white vinegar for wool, nylon or silk fabric. Adding the salt or vinegar helps the dye soak into the fabric more easily.
Return to the dye bath every five to ten minutes to stir and agitate the pillow covers a little with the wooden spoon. This helps the dye evenly penetrate the fabric. Keep this agitation for about half an hour.
Lift one of the pillow covers partially from the dye bath to check at the shade. If the shade isn’t as heavy as you desire, return it into the dye bath and keep soaking the covers, stirring and agitating every five to ten minutes until the shade is satisfactory. It shouldn’t take over an hour. Keep in mind that the last shade once the fabric is dry will be lighter than it appears when the fabric is wet.
Lift the pillow covers from the dye bath and squeeze the excess dye solution back into the bucket. Take the covers into the sink and rinse them under warm water, then cold water until you can’t see any more dye running from the fabric. Squeeze the covers to remove excess water, then put them in your clothes dryer or hang them up to dry.
Set the cushion types or stuffing back inside the pillow covers. In case you needed to unpick part of a seam to remove the pillows, then stitch the seam back with a needle and matching thread.