Tie Dye Travels

A few years ago, I was wrangled in to preparing some banners for a music concert. There wasn't much wrangling, I love music.

There was plenty of tie-dye. The tapestry banners were made by Mr. Tie Dye, Carl McClellan, of Corvallis, Oregon. They were beautiful tapestries, brightly colored and crisply detailed. Awesome is a word that comes to mind.

These days, McClellan is still at it, pumping out tie-dye at an eye-popping rate. T-shirts, shoes, hoodies, tapestries...the tie-dye production line never ceases. McClellan says that is why he does it. "I love what I do," he said with a shrug. It comes natural, to Mr. Tie Dye.

McClellan operates Mr. Tie Dye out of his Corvallis, Oregon home, and sells on Etsy. A bio on the Mr. Tie Dye website, introduces McClellan and his work. Business is steady, so order ahead of expectation dates. Following McClellan is easy, as Mr. Tie Dye is on Facebook.

Tie-dying for over a decade now, McClellan has learned to accept the random nature of tie-dye. "Tie-dye can't be controlled, it goes where it wants to go," he said. Even so, McClellan's works show fine detail. Incorporated in the tie-dye clothing, are bear faces, ducks, dragonflies, guitars, and whatever else McClellan conjures up. "I just go where it takes me," said McClellan, "I draw inspiration from all avenues."

As the 2014 summer closes, McClellan has been busy with his latest project, a 10,000 square foot labyrinth called "Peace." The huge art piece has 115 separate parts, all prepared by hand. The process is extremely technical and tedious.

Soaked in a homemade solution and half-dried, the material is then dyed damp. The tying process requires good hand, eye, and math skills. McClellan often sketches the "lines," measuring painstakingly accurate dimensions, before beginning the tying process. Then, after carefully folding and tying the fabric, loose ends are buttoned up and crinkly folds are added. "It(crinkly folds) gives depth and texture," McClellan noted.

The material is then washed and dried, and stored in totes. The quality of McClellan's materials, and the meticulous process involved in the craft, help insure the tie-dye stays vivid and sharp.

"Peace" is scheduled to be a main attraction at the Saint Francis Festival in Hayfork, California, beginning September 26, and running until October 5. The festival, the world's largest tie-dye exposition, focuses on American made and distributed products, something McClellan is proud of. "It is a group effort," he said, referring to the festival's American focus.

Mr. Tie Dye offers custom t-shirts, hoodies, home decor, hair-ties, towels, and tie-dyed Converse All-Stars, McClellan's most popular product. All products are hand dyed to McClellan's standards, and are made from the finest of materials. Scrap material, is saved and re-used for curtains and hair-ties. Even the homemade rinse, is recycled and re-used.

At St. Francis, McClellan will lead workshops on techniques and t-shirt tie-dying. McClellan has never attended the festival, and is looking forward to the exposure and the sharing of his craft. "I would like to travel and eventually rent out the labyrinth," he said.

McClellan is busy these days, and between the "Peace" project and the clothing orders, there is not much time for anything else. My guess is, he wouldn't have it any other way.