I've dyed my first pony.....now what?

[Stiletto]

So I have dyed my first pony with RIT dye and she looks pretty good.  I know I have to leave her sit around for at least a month so her paint (particularly her eyes, won't bleed), but is it OK to go ahead and re-hair her or wait?  Also, I have some Testors Dullcote but should I go ahead and seal her, paint when ready, and seal again?  Or wait until she is completely painted to seal?  N00b questions I am sure but I just want to do the best job possible and learn along the way!

[blackestbird]

You'll want to let her sit for a while before you do anything at all. The dye needs time to settle. If you rehair her, the dye could bleed into the hair. I'm not 100% sure on sealing, but I'd think you need to just wait on that too. Since the dye bleeds, I don't think the sealant would lock it in while it's still settling; I think the dye would just bleed into your sealant and possibly cause some weird patterning/discoloration and places where the dye looks different once it does settle.

[PandaBerryInSpace]

I agree that the dye would bleed into the sealant. I once did a symbol over a dyed pony and sealed it, and it bled right through the paint. With dyed ponies, most people wait several months to a year before it's fully ready to be customized.

[maycrestmom]

put her on the shelf and forget about her for like what seems life forever (year or more is better but I think at minimum 6 mos) = and this would be after a vinegar bath or I've read some folks run 'em through a dishwashing cycle = to make sure all the excess dye is removed.

Oh - and if you store in a bait box, throw it first into a baggie or else you will get some dye bleeding onto other baits that they touch

I like the look of a dyed pony but you have to plan to take F-O-R-E-V-E-R to get it done = this is usually not a good choice if it's for a swap

just my two cents

have fun customizing (other ponies while you wait for your dyed girl to cure)

[Pony Adventures]

This is great information!  Thanks. I also plan to dye a pony but I never realized they had to sit for so long. Cool.

[elvenwine26]

wipe her down with a acetone on a cotton swab to remove the residual dye particles and rinse her off in water.
I always forget that there's still some physical particle layer.  Isn't dyeing ponies fun? I'm kind of addicted.

I've had the bleeding through before.  I'd painted the most beautiful eyes I've ever done on a pony but because I didn't wait long enough the red dye of the body stained the eye whites pinky red.  Pink eye ponies was not the look I hoped for I had to completely strip all the paint off and start from scratch. Lost my motivation which is probably why she's still sitting in my wips. haha

[sd_dreamcrystal]

I've had the bleeding through before.  I'd painted the most beautiful eyes I've ever done on a pony but because I didn't wait long enough the red dye of the body stained the eye whites pinky red.  Pink eye ponies was not the look I hoped for I had to completely strip all the paint off and start from scratch. Lost my motivation which is probably why she's still sitting in my wips. haha

Been there myself... I've stopped dying ponies because even after the 6 month wait there was still bleed in the paint after sealing...

I'm wondering if one dyes a pony then uses a sealer (in a rather thick coat) to cover the pony then peal off the sealer if said pony would still bleed the dye? I might have to test that one day...

[elvenwine26]

I don't know.  It might.  I've had it stain my sculpey  before as well.  Oh dye!  haha.  But I've also had super good luck lately with the dye, rub down with 100% acetone, and the rinse with water method.  I've had one pony with some base white on her for a week and it still hasn't stained purple yet. 
I'll dye batches of them for fun with no real idea of what they'll be used for. Haha
Glitter ponies are the best for dye.  They look totally awesome when you dye them.  But even better when you rub a thin layer of gloss sealer all over their bodies. It really brings out the sparkle instead of having them look dull and flat with.  Works on G1 sparkles too, revives that translucent+glitter look instead of the cloudy sort.  Try it out some time. 

[kaoskat]

I've had the bleeding through before.  I'd painted the most beautiful eyes I've ever done on a pony but because I didn't wait long enough the red dye of the body stained the eye whites pinky red.  Pink eye ponies was not the look I hoped for I had to completely strip all the paint off and start from scratch. Lost my motivation which is probably why she's still sitting in my wips. haha

Been there. Done that. Not fun.