Non toxic safe dyes

Non toxic dyes and other process essentials are important for us and our customers. Professional dyers and no doubt less professional dyers are offered cheap dyestuffs and other products quite often. We are never tempted to use them and they can appear to be startlingly cheap. You have perhaps heard of toxic dyes and the risk of allergic reactions they can cause.  You can be sure we never use them, we are never persuaded by the low prices on offer for these dyestuffs. Although we have no doubt that many garments and other products are dyed with these cheap dyes. All of our dyestuffs are supplied directly to us by leading European producers who can certify the purity and source of the materials. We will only use safe non toxic dyes and auxiliaries. Not only are these dyes safe and non toxic to use but also give the best results. High quality dyes produce more consistent results that can be reproduced time after time and are highly unlikely to cause any harm or allergic reactions to us or the end user.  

There are different classes and types of non toxic dyes and they all have a place. It all depends on the end use and the result required. Each class of dyestuff is available in different qualities and prices and our principle is to use the best available of each type for the reasons outlined above. For example we view reactive dyes as the top of the range for producing high quality results for colour matching, colour fastness and reproducibility. Reactive dyes give the most level and most pristine results. They are also the most expensive because of the dye costs and the lengthy process times and skill required to handle them. However the pristine finish is not always the look the customer seeks to achieve particularly on some leisurewear such as T-shirts and sweatshirts where a more casual worn look is often required. For this purpose pigment dyes may be the most suitable.

In some cases a cheap and cheerful easy to use dyestuff like a direct dye can be used. An example of this would be the overdyeing of used clothing such as ex army jackets to black. Here the idea is to produce a fashion garment at a reasonable price where considerations such as long term colourfastness and reproducibility are less important. We will occasionally use them for such purposes where the customer understands the limitations. Direct dyes cannot achieve the levelness of reactive dyes nor the colourfastness of reactive dyes. However their cheapness and ease of use does mean that some less professional dyers may use them where reactive dyes should really be called for.

Whichever type of dyestuff we use it is still important to us that it is the best of its type. It must be non toxic and from a certified source. Our head dyer buys only from leading suppliers and with great care. He understands well all the different types and is probably one of the most experienced dyers in Europe. He is a chartered colourist and a long standing member of The Society of Dyers and Colourists. You can be sure that here at Blue Mill we use only safe non toxic dyes.