Urea

Recommended for use with Fiber Reactive Dyes when doing tie-dye, painting, printing and other methods of direct application. Urea is a 'moisture drawing' agent or 'humectant' which keeps the fabric damper longer during the curing or fixing process, thereby making for deeper, brighter colors. Fiber Reactive dyes won't "fix" if they dry out!

You need about 1/4 cup per quart of dye solution for tie-dye mixtures, and about 3/4 cup per quart of chemical water for direct application. FYI, each pound of Urea yields about 2.5 cups.

For Tie Dye:

For mixing up a single cup of dye solution for an 8 oz squirt bottle, first dissolve 1 tablespoon urea in 8 oz of hot water. Let it cool to lukewarm, then paste up your dye with this water. This will help break up clumps and it will dissolve the dye better than plain water.

When mixing large amounts of dye or multiple colors, it is most efficient to make a large batch of Urea water. Mix 1 cup urea to a gallon of hot water, let it cool to luke warm before using. Also, a couple of drops of Calsolene Oil can help (breaks surface tension). You can label and store this to have at the ready if you mix dyes often. Store in a cool place. If you open it and it smells like ammonia, it has gone bad though.

Pro Tip: Urea is also a great dissolving agent and helps dissolve those "stubborn" colors of any type powdered dye that is harder to dissolve, and might leave a residue or "freckles" of un-dissolved dye on your work. Just use warm Urea water (1 TBS per Cup) to paste up your dye to get it more thoroughly dissolved. Helps to dissolve more solids into less liquids so great for making the really concentrated solutions you need for tie-dye and dye painting, especially the darker colors. Use the Urea water mix when pasting the dye just like you would paste flour for perfect lump free gravy - gradually adding the liquid to the powder while smashing and stirring.

Pro Tip: Silk Painters - try this instead of or along with course salt or Silk Salt for super textural effects when silk painting!