The process
A leaf or a blade does the design. We hold the sprayer.
Every Dyeing By Design shirt is reverse-bleach art: instead of adding ink to the fabric, we take color away from everything around the design. It starts one of two ways. For the botanical line, a walk in the Maine woods — we gather real leaves, staghorn sumac, northern white cedar, ostrich fern, whatever the season drops, and carry them back while they still lie flat. For the graphic and stencil line, a clean vector design, cut into a stencil by hand.
Everything gets arranged on a heavyweight cotton tee. Stencils are held flat so the edges stay sharp; leaves are laid flat so their shadows come out soft and organic. Then comes the part you can't fake: a slow, even mist of bleach over the whole layout. The exposed fabric lightens — every blank burns to its own tone, black to gold, red to peach, blue to pale. Underneath the leaf or the stencil, the cotton keeps its color. When it lifts away, its shadow stays behind — every vein of pressure, every crisp cut edge, every stray fleck of spray. Then the back gets its own layout and its own pass, so every shirt comes out finished front and back, and no two backs match either.
Next comes a step you'd never see from the outside: a hydrogen peroxide bath that neutralizes the bleach. Bleach left in cotton keeps eating at the fibers long after it dries, so stopping it is what keeps your shirt strong wash after wash. Then we wash and dry it and check every edge. What ships to you is burned into the fibers — permanent, soft, and impossible to repeat. It will never crack, peel, or fade, because there is nothing on top of the fabric to come off. We could not make two identical shirts if we tried. We've tried.
Made on
Hanes Beefy-T
- Weight
- 6.1 oz
- Fabric
- 100% ring spun cotton
- Fit
- Soft, relaxed fit
A heavyweight classic since 1975. Pure cotton takes the bleach evenly, so the burn reads clean and the shirt comes through the process without going thin.
Good to know
What's DBD?
Us. DBD is short for Dyeing By Design — it's the mark on the shirts and how most people around Brunswick, Maine say it. If you're searching, "DBD shirts Maine" or "Dyeing By Design" both land here: dyeingbydesign.com, or @dyeingbydesign on Instagram.
Will mine look exactly like the photo?
No, and that's the point. Leaf placement, spray density, and how far the burn goes vary from shirt to shirt — even two shirts cut from the same stencil come out with their own contrast and tone. Yours is the only one like it.
Is there a design on the back too?
Yes. Every shirt in the lineup is finished front and back, so you get a full design on both sides, not a single stamp on the chest. The back gets laid out fresh on every shirt, so it's a one of one all its own and never matches anyone else's. That's why the photos only show the front.
Why bleach instead of screen printing?
Zero feel — the design is burned into the fibers, so there's no stiff plastic layer on your chest. It's indestructible — nothing sits on top of the fabric to crack, peel, or wash out. And it's 100% unique — even with the same stencil, the bleach reacts a little differently every time.
Can you do my logo?
Yes. Send us a clean, high-contrast version (vector — SVG or PDF — is ideal) through the custom request page. We cut the stencil by hand and quote each piece individually.
How do I wash it?
Cold water, inside out, gentle cycle. Hang dry or tumble low. Before your shirt ships, the bleach is neutralized in a hydrogen peroxide bath and washed out, so it can't keep working on the cotton. The design is permanent and won't spread.
Will the bleach weaken the shirt?
Not the way we do it. Bleach that's left in cotton keeps breaking the fibers down over time, which is how a bleached shirt can go thin. Every DBD shirt gets a hydrogen peroxide bath to neutralize the bleach before it's washed, so the bleach stops working the moment the design is done.
What shirts do you use?
Heavyweight ring spun cotton tees — soft, with a relaxed fit — in seventeen blank colors: Black Spruce, Granite, Deep Harbor, Blueberry, Sea Smoke, Tide Pool, Sea Glass, Balsam, Sapling, Lichen, Goldenrod, Sunflower, Ember, Rosehip, Cranberry, Chokecherry, and Lupine. The bleach burns each color differently — black goes gold, reds go peach, greens go tan, blues go pale, and the lighter blanks go softer still — so the same design reads differently on every shirt. They run roomy, so if you like a closer fit, take your usual size rather than sizing up.
How do I pay?
Add what you want to your cart. Shirts we have counted and ready go straight to a secure card checkout (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay). Made to order shirts and custom pieces go in as an order request — send it with your shipping address and we reply within a day with a secure payment link and a ship date. Nothing is charged until you pay.
How long until it ships?
Each shirt is made after your order is paid. Allow 1 to 2 weeks of making time depending on how many orders are ahead of you, then US shipping with tracking. $7 flat rate per order. In Brunswick or Topsham? Pick local drop off in your cart. It's free, and we'll call or text you to set up a place and time to hand it off.
Can I cancel an order?
Yes, until Corey starts on it. Every order email has a link to your order: an order request nobody has started cancels right there, and nothing has been charged. Once he's started on it, or if it's already paid for, the same link asks him instead and he'll reply by email, usually within a day — if he cancels something you've paid for, the money goes back to your card. Once it has shipped it can't be cancelled, but every piece gets a free swap (you cover the postage back).
Returns?
Every piece is bleached by hand for one person, so nothing comes back for a refund over fit or a change of mind. What you get instead is a swap: one free exchange per piece for a different size or color, within 14 days of it landing. Ask for one at dyeingbydesign.com/swap — you cover postage back, we make the new one and ship it free.
Is there a guarantee?
Yes, the DBD quality promise. Every shirt is made by hand in Maine and neutralized and washed before it leaves. If yours arrives with a flaw, like a hole or a bad seam, or isn't what you ordered, tell us within 30 days of it landing and we'll remake it or refund you, your choice. You cover the postage to send it back, and we get the replacement to you free. The whole promise is at dyeingbydesign.com/swap#promise.
Do you ship outside the US?
Not right now. Every order ships within the US, so checkout and order requests only take a US address. A gift for someone in the US is fine wherever you're ordering from.