RANDOLPH — Dyeing for You is another new business in downtown Randolph “keeping the community colorful,” and its owner is hoping to bring area residents together.

Cheyenne Marsh opened the doors of her tie-dye business on Halloween night when she invited the public to come in and see her tie-dye merchandise on display for the first time.

The tie-dye shop/studio offers a colorful array of eye-catching designs on good-quality t-shirts for adults and children, onesies for infants, bandanas, tapestries and decorative flour sacks that can be used as wall hangings or table cloths. She also creates jewelry, dream catchers and other unique items.

According to fashion search engine Tagwalk, tie-dye made a comeback in summer 2019 and has remained popular ever since, consistently ranking in the top 10 most searched prints and patterns in women’s wear.

“You are never too old to wear color,” Marsh said. “Right now, everybody is into tie-dyes. A lot of people have been asking me how I do it and if I’d be willing to show them. They also ask if I do classes.”

Marsh is offering classes for children on Wednesday evenings from 5-6 p.m. She’s also scheduling Saturday morning classes for children from 11 a.m. to noon and Saturday evening classes for adults with a time to be determined. Current price is $25 to create a child’s shirt and $35 for an adult shirt. If someone wants to bring in a specific item to dye, she can work out a price with them.

When people arrive to take a class, Marsh will have everything all set up and ready to go. The blank t-shirts will be soaked in soda ash to produce brighter and more colorfast results. A variety of dyes in various colors will be made up in bottles, ready to begin the process.

“I’ll demonstrate the process for the class, then I’ll assist them,” Marsh said. “I’ll show them how to fold the shirt, tie it with a rubber band and apply the colors. Then, they’ll put their tie-dye in a bag and take it home with some washing instructions. They’ll be surprised with the results.”

Marsh said the soda ash causes a chemical reaction with the industrial-grade dyes that she orders from a California distributor. Because the particles in the dyes are so fine, she wears a mask while mixing them.

“I mix my dyes with urea which is a safe, nitrogen compound in little balls,” she said. “The urea slows the drying process, allowing more time for the dye to react with the fiber and yields deeper shades.”

Marsh would like to feature guest artists and artisans at her studio. She welcomes them to volunteer to talk about their music or craft, show some of their work and demonstrate their art techniques. She’s especially interested in demonstrations on old craft techniques including the ancient trade of flint knapping, basket weaving and other vintage handcrafts.

She also welcomes organizations to come in and give educational presentations.

“People might want to do their own group events, so I’m trying to keep everything open,” she said. “I’m thinking about doing a ‘Sip and Dye’ class similar to the popular ‘Sip and Paint’ classes.”

Space is limited in Marsh’s small studio, accommodating only six people per class. She would also be happy to do a class for one person, and would travel to a certain location for some classes.

Marsh said she began learning the art of tie-dyeing when she was about 15. She said a friend’s mother, who had a tie-dye shop in Jamestown, took her under her wing and taught her the craft. She started doing it again as a hobby eight years ago.

“I started doing small craft shows and other little events,” she said. “The last year or two, people have been asking me if I would do some bigger shows and I thought maybe I needed to do something.”

The idea to have a shop and studio was born in August when she saw an available storefront on Main Street in Randolph. Marsh said she could have set up her shop almost anywhere in the area, and Salamanca was her first thought because she has a lot of followers there from the farmers’ market.

“I live in Randolph and I wanted to keep my business in my own community,” she said. “The people in Randolph have helped me out a lot and I wanted to give back.”

Marsh resides in Randolph with Jessie, her significant other of 11 years. She has four children and three grandchildren.

For more information or to schedule a class, call Marsh at (716) 490-2626.