I bought two cute Ikea ottomans second hand for very cheap and obviously they had many stains on the covers. I’ve had them for maybe two years (I hate to admit) and I have tried just about everything to get them clean. Bleach, scrubbing, vinegar, all of the tricks and nothing has worked. Finally I caved and decided to straight up dye them.
This is what I was working with. They look great in my space, but they were just so dirty.
The close up, so you can really tell what I was working with. After searching the internet, I saw a gorgeous photo of a white pillow dyed a beautiful orange/yellow with Turmeric. I had a whole jar full and I must admit its not my go to spice, so I decided to give it a try!
First I mixed the dye. This part was really simple; I dumped a ton of turmeric in a pot, added some water and gave it a good mix. I wasn’t so keen on how yellow it was looking, so I added a little bit of curry and a bit of a Yemenite soup mix that was of a similar color. I gave it a good mix and was happy with the color. I let this sit on the flame for about an hour and a half.
I took the covers off and let them sit in cold water for about 10 minutes. I was trying to go for an ombre look, so I divided the cover in three parts, dipping each section for a different amount of time in five minute intervals while the dye was still warm. So the bottom sat for 5 minutes, the middle sat for 10 and the top sat for 15 minutes. I used a large mixing spoon balanced on the edge to help keep a little bit of a white section between each section to give it a cool look.
I put the covers to dry on my porch overnight to make sure the dye really set in before rinsing.
After a rinse and another dry, the covers look great! Don’t mind my sleepy dog .
source:hometalk.com by Raquel Amster
