# Red Cabbage Water Tie-Dye Art > Soak a white t-shirt in red cabbage water and let it dry, then drip and pour acids and bases onto it and watch pink and blue-green patterns appear. This is process art: the colors fade within about a week and rinse out in water. - URL: https://www.funlittles.com/science-experiments-for-kids-red-cabbage-water-tie-dye/ - Ages: 3–8 yrs · Difficulty: medium · Mess: high - Time: prep 10 min, activity 20 min - Works for: one-on-one, small group, whole class - Skills: science, acids-and-bases, ph-indicators, color-change, fine-motor, process-art - Cautions: citrus, ingestion-risk ## Materials (one batch) - 1 piece Plain white t-shirt - Chopped red cabbage - Water (household) - 1 piece Flat container (tray or shallow tub) (household) - Lemon juice (household) - Vinegar (household) - Baking soda (household) - Washing detergent (household) - Soda (Sprite) - Citric acid (optional) - Cream of tartar (optional) (household) - 1 piece Plastic cups, labeled (household) - 1 piece Droppers or pipettes (optional) ## Substitutions - Instead of white t shirt: Heavy watercolor paper (The author did the same process on heavy watercolor paper for 'magic painting'. A good choice if kids expect to keep their art.) - Instead of laundry detergent: Baking soda as the only base (Editor suggestion, not from the post: skip the detergent for kids who still mouth things.) ## Safety - An adult makes the red cabbage water. Handle any hot water or stovetop work away from kids. - Washing detergent is not taste-safe. An adult pours it into the cup, and kids should not mouth it or get it in their eyes. - Lemon juice, citric acid and vinegar sting eyes and cuts. Wash hands after play. - Nothing in the experiment cups is for drinking, including the soda. - Supervise closely while kids pour and drip the liquids. - Red cabbage water can stain clothes and surfaces. Wear old clothes and work outdoors or on a covered table. ## Before you start - Make a large batch of red cabbage water from chopped red cabbage. - Pour the red cabbage water into a flat container, soak each t-shirt for about 3 minutes, wring it out and dry it flat. Allow drying time before the activity. - Pour each liquid or powder into its own labeled cup. - Tell kids ahead of time that the colors fade and rinse out, so this is about the process, not a shirt to keep. ## Steps 1. Adult: make a big batch of red cabbage water, our magic potion. 2. Pour the cabbage water into a flat container and soak the white t-shirt for about 3 minutes. 3. Wring out the excess water and let the shirt dry on a flat surface. 4. Lay the dry shirt out and set the labeled cups of lemon juice, vinegar, detergent, baking soda and soda beside it. 5. Drop the liquids onto the shirt one at a time. Acids turn pink, and bases turn blue-green. 6. Pour bigger amounts for big, dramatic color changes. 7. Let the shirt dry flat again for a few hours. 8. Enjoy the colors while they last. They fade after about a week and rinse out in water. ## Tips - The red cabbage water is the pH indicator. Acids turn it varying shades of pink, and bases turn it varying shades of blue-green. - Ours immediately moved on to larger quantities of the liquids, since kids LOVE big dramatic reactions. - My 3 year old couldn't get enough of pouring soda on the t-shirt. - The color seems to fade after a week or so, and it rinses out if it touches water. I'd say this is a fun process art. - A reader who did this with a group of kids loved the process, but the kids were bummed that their shirts rinsed out. Set expectations up front. (from readers) ## FAQ **Does the shirt stay colored? Is it wearable?** No. The color fades after a week or so and rinses out if it gets wet. The author calls it a fun process art. ## The original post by TurkeyMom (2013) We have initially explored the fun aspects of red cabbage water back in July! Check out the original [**science experiment with red cabbage water**](https://www.funlittles.com/science-experiments-kids-scientist-dramatic-play/) and all other [**science experiments for kids**](https://www.funlittles.com/category/science-2/) here. Since then, we had lots of fun making this "[**Color Changing Goop"**](https://www.funlittles.com/sensory-activities-color-changing-goop-science/) with red cabbage water! Today we share an artsy post - combining science and art. Couple of images are from the original post. *The T-shirt used in the post was sent to us by Sprout Online as a part of their The Chica Show campaign.* Check the [**original post**](https://www.funlittles.com/science-experiments-kids-scientist-dramatic-play/) for more details about the show and the fun scientist costume you can make. **Materials:** - Chopped red cabbage - Lemon Juice - Citric Acid - Vinegar - Baking Soda - Washing Detergent - A plain, white t-shirt - Cream of Tartar Red Cabbage Water - our magic potion For this science experiment, I made a larger batch and poured all the red cabbage water in a flat container and soaked the t-shirt in it. I let it sit for about 3 minutes and wrung out the excess water. I let the shirt dry on a flat surface. Once dry, it is ready for a fun activity with acids and bases. I set out lemon juice, vinegar, washing detergent, baking soda and soda {Sprite}. All the other materials listed above are optional The red cabbage water serves as the pH indicator and changes color based on the added item - acids turn the cabbage water varying shades of pink and bases turn varying shades of blue-green. The dry red cabbage water soaked t-shirt was the canvas for my little ones. They experimented with different liquid and enjoyed pouring and dropping them on to the shirt. They immediately moved on to larger quantities of the liquids since you know, kids LOVE big dramatic reactions. We let the shirt dry again for a few hours. My 3 year old couldn't get enough of pouring soda on the t-shirt and watching it turn green. Thanks for reading Check out the [**color surprise goop experiment**](https://www.funlittles.com/sensory-activities-color-changing-goop-science/) [](https://www.funlittles.com/sensory-activities-color-changing-goop-science/)