Fourth of July Tie Dye

So, my family is really BIG on celebrating the Fourth of July! We go all out and the festivities last upwards of one week!! My kids have lots of cousins and I usually do an annual photo with all my nieces and nephew. We have done tie dye before, so I wanted to amp it up for the 4th and add monograms and matching outfits! 

First, my friend monogrammed all of the t-shirts for me. She is amazing and I would LOVE if you went to her new business and gave her some LOVE by liking her page!! Monogram Princess

She sells lots of cute things too!

Next we tied up the shirts with rubber bands and soaked them in soda ash. You can buy it at the craft store. It actually enhances the colors of your tie dye!

I bunched up the monogram and put seran wrap over it and tied it with a rubber band to keep dye off of it.

 

We used the Tulip brand tie dye which is my favorite. It comes with gloves and rubber bands too and its SOOOOO easy! You don't have to be crafy or artsy to do this!

Heres my advice...WEAR the GLOVES!!

When you take the shirts out, wring them out really good before you start tie dying. Cover your shirt very good and try to get the dye in all the cracks or you will be surprised when you open it how much you missed. You really need to use alot of the dye and get it pretty saturated

 It will get all over you so wear old clothes/bathing suits. My 4 yr old got it all over her legs and even on her face....it takes several showers before it comes off!!

When you finish, place the shirts in a ziplock bag and let them sit over night. The longer they stay in the bag, the brighter the colors will be. You can even let them sit a few days. (We couldn't wait that long!) I have five nieces 6 and under!!

You can see the little white blob where I tied up the monogram covered in plastic wrap!

When you open the bag, you can lay them on the grass and gently run the hose over them but don't ring them out! Just place them in the washing machine, and wash on a cold gentle cycle, but put it on a SUPER LARGE setting so it fills the machine with LOTS of water to dilute all the dye that will be floating around. 

I hope you have fun Tie Dying! Send me your pictures!!! Happy Fourth of July from our little firecrackers to yours!!!

I am SO honored to be able to celebrate this holiday because of ALL the people who have paid the price for me to have this privilage! My grandfather (below) was one of them. My grandfather stormed the beach at Normandy 70 years ago. He recalled the color of the sea being completely red as he rushed out onto the beach with thousands of bullets flying overhead after an arduous journey across the sea hearing torpedos speed past his ship nightly, wondering when/if each one would be the last. He was a prisoner of war who escaped, he survived a line up at the Massacre of Malmedy where he fell just before the bullets hit him and was able to fake his death and the bayonets that preceded the firing line. He carried an injured soldier on his back for 12 miles and hid in enemy teritory for 7 days before being reunited with his battalion! My grandfather was a hero! He went on to marry and serve as a missionary in Jamaica with my grandmother and my mom for many years. My grandparents leave behind a beautiful legacy of unconditional love, faith, courage, and honor.  I grew up next door to my grandparents and didn't hear any of his heroic stories until a few years before he passed. It is because of all the people like my grandpa who have made such sacrifices, that I am so blessed to be able to celebrate and live this beautiful life of freedom! God Bless America!