How to make fabric glow under black light.

 

Rit Fabric Whitener (dye) will make any white or light colored fabric glow an eerie blue under a black light (flourescent lights work best).

 

I find it easy to use my washing machine for this project, however a large bucket or tub would work provided it's big enough for the ingredients and fabric.

What to do:

 

1.  Fill Washing Machine about 1/3 with water.

 

2. Add Rit Fabric Whitener and stir until it's dissolved.

 

3. Add fabric and Stir (with hand or a broom stick). You can also just Agitate the Washing Machine

 

4. Let soak for 2-4 hours

 

5. Run the spin cycle on the washer (by pass the rinse cycle manually) or wring by hand but you don't want to drip on the carpet!!

 

6. Hang from line or clothes hanger over tub or outdoors until dry. DO NOT DRY IN DRYER!!

 

7. While your fabric is drying.. run the washing machine empty for a full cycle.  This will rinse off any residual whitener. 

Note: the whitener should not harm any clothing, dark or light, that is washed in the machine afterwards.

 

 

Glow Ghost

 

Materials:  1 box Rit Fabric Whitener, 1 styrofoam wig head, 1 6ft dowel rod, Roll Cheese Cloth, Wire clothes hanger, 1 black light, white craft glue, 1/2 inch paintbrush.

 

 

1. Follow above instructions using Cheese Cloth as your Fabric to make it glow.

 

2. While you're waiting on  your cheese cloth, make a hole in the bottom of the wig head (the neck part) that the dowel rod will fit into so the head won't fall off.

 

3. Thin glue with a little water until it's a little thinner than most craft paints and can be spread easily with a paint brush.

 

4.  Straighten out the hook on the clothes hanger and insert into the wig head just behind the hole for the dowel.

 

5. Drape your cloth over the wig head using the hanger as "shoulders" and trim/shape (even add tatters) as you like, then remove the hanger for now.

 

6. Use the paintbrush to "paint" the glue over the cheese cloth on the wig form. Top, back, sides and paying careful attention the facial features.

      During this process, put your hand under the cloth and lift the wig head by the neck periodically so you can look at how the cloth hangs and where

      it needs glue.

 

7. Carefully set aside to dry overnight.

 

8.  Stick dowel rod into ground where you want  your ghost (you might need to sharpen the end of the dowel to get it in the ground)

 

9. Re-attach clothes hanger to the head, under the cloth. Attach head to top of dowel rod and adjust as needed. 

 

10. Place black light near your ghost so it shines on it, turn it on and watch the glow.

 

To add more dimension to your ghost you can take an extra piece of cheese cloth approximately 3ft wide and 2 feet shorter than your ghost and make a "cowel" (sort of like a nun's habit or a  hood). You should more than enough cheese cloth for this process without buying extra.

 

 After you glue the original cloth to the head (either before or after it dries)  Find the center of your extra piece, scrunch it up and place it on the top of the head, so it would be just above the forehead of the ghost, and glue in place: top, sides and the top part of the back of the head. You want this part to be wrinkled and bunched up on the top and partially down the sides of the head so it looks like a hood or nun's habit. 

Let Dry over night.

 

Drape the hanging part of this piece over the front of the ghost when you assemble everything.

 

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