DIY Ombré Dyed Napkins
Learn to make your own DIY Ombré napkins in less than thirty minutes. Take plain white napkins and turn them into custom, colorful accents to create a gorgeous table for your next dinner party.
As the holiday season approached, I was feeling inspired to plan out a beautiful table for our first ever hosted Thanksgiving dinner. I saw so many great inspiration photos on Pinterest and Instagram, one of which were these dip-dyed ombré curtains. I thought, “hey, what if I did that except with napkins?” Scroll on for a full video to see how to do it yourself, and my thoughts on the final product.
So… pretty easy, right? If you’re more of a learn-by-reading kind of person, here are the typed out instructions:
Find napkins or fabric that you’d like to use. These ones are from World Market - I like the fringe on the ends, and they were only $2 each. Pre-wash (I completely forgot this step, but mine still turned out, so do with it what you will…)
Fold napkins and secure with a rubber band at the top (this is just to have something to hook onto your bucket). PUT ON GLOVES!!
Combine dye, 1 cup of salt, and a smidgen of dish soap with VERY hot water, just enough to cover the bottom of the napkins. Submerge napkins and use paperclips to secure to pot. By the way - you can use either an old stainless steel pot like me, or any bucket you don’t mind getting dye on.
Wait about 4 minutes, then add more water, making sure to use HOT water. Continue this process until you’ve reached the rubber band.
Transfer pot to sink area. Take out napkins one at a time to rinse in COLD water until the water runs clear. As I took out the napkins, I realized I didn’t like the stark ivory at the tops, so I just dunked it back in the dye for about 10 seconds.
Throw all napkins in the laundry with regular laundry detergent. Lay flat to dry. Make sure to run a rinse cycle afterwards, otherwise your next load will turn the color of your dye.
Iron napkins and style your table. Wow your guests!
My final thoughts? I think they turned out really pretty; however, I had hoped for them to be a bit more wine colored. These came out more on the pink side. Not exactly the fall, Thanksgiving-vibe I was initially going for. I think when styled with the rest of the table set-up, you still get the idea, but perhaps an orange or yellow dye would have leaned more into the fall direction. I will certainly use them, but I suppose think about the lightest iteration of your intended color, and be okay if your napkins turn out like that!
Total cost = $15.73
I would absolutely do this DIY again, and now that I’ve experimented with dye, who knows what else is on the horizon!! Happy Thanksgiving y’all!
