As requested: tutorial for using iDye in the front loading washer

Different washers of course have different programs and settings. These instructions are based on my machine, which has a "heavy" setting that consists of 16 minutes of wash in hot water, then three cold rinses and three spins. When I hit "cancel" on my washer, it stops immediately and does not drain or spin.

1. Pre-wet fabric when going for even dyeing. (Do not pre-wet if wanting to tie dye or wanting mottled look). I do this by starting the program, then canceling after a couple of minutes.

2. Move fabric over to one side of the washer, pour salt and iDye packet(s) over on the other side. Begin a cycle that starts with a hot wash.

3. Set timer for 10 minutes (or less, if your washer is going to start draining before that). Add water, generally as hot as possible, to the machine through the detergent dispenser. I do this because front loaders use very little water, so the material wouldn't normally be in enough water to move much. I've added up to two gallons in a whole dye cycle.

4. When timer goes off, cancel wash cycle, then immediately restart it. Add a few cups of very hot water per dye packet to keep the bath hot. I keep a pot of water almost boiling on my stove, which is conveniently right next to the washer.

5. For very dark colors and/or heavy fabric, do four or five 10-minute wash-then-reset cycles, then let it run through a full cycle to rinse the dye out. If your cycle doesn't already include two or three rinses, add them, or run it through a few times to make sure it's sufficiently rinsed. For lighter colors, do less time. For instance, for a sheet and some small items with one packet of purple, I did two 10-minute baths, then on the third cycle let it run all the way through.

6. Dry fabric in dryer on the hottest setting, unless it's something where shrinkage is going to be a problem.

Note: This method is obviously less environmentally friendly than stove-top method or similar might be, because of all the water and energy use. The good part is that a lot of this can be more-or-less offset since dyeing is a good way to revive things like grungy-but-still-sturdy socks, thrift store finds, stained or damaged fabrics, etc.