Hemostat Mandalas
Mandalas are a popular tie dye design. I see a lot of mandala tapestries and they are gorgeous, but I also love the mandala design on a shirt. Hemostat mandalas in particular are some of my favorites. If you aren’t sure what I am talking about - here are a couple of links to some of my hemostat mandala videos. I have several others on my YouTube channel too. These are just a few examples.
Obviously, one of the most important items needed to tie a hemostat mandala shirt is hemostats. Hemostats come in a variety of sizes and types. I use both straight locking hemostats and curved locking hemostats. I have several different sizes of hemostats, but the ones that I use the most are 8 inches and larger. Hemostats that have a larger teeth area are also my favorite. Some varieties are long, but they don’t have a very large clamping area. The size of the clamping area is important when using them for tie dye. If they are sturdy that is a plus too. Some of the smaller ones are a bit too delicate. I know that each type of hemostat has a specific name, but I’m not familiar with the medical terminology for the specific types. I’ve purchased most of my hemostats from either Amazon or Ebay. However, you can find them a lot of other places too. Here are links to a couple different types of hemostats that are like what I use - https://amzn.to/2QowKnk https://amzn.to/3wbKAMH
On my hemostats, I have coated the teeth or clamping area with heat shrink tubing. The heat shrink tubing helps give a tighter clamp and hold on the shirt. It also helps keep the teeth from damaging the fabric. I usually purchase mine from Home Depot. It is on the aisle with the electrical supplies at my local store. If you aren’t familiar with heat shrink tubing, here is a link: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-1-4-in-Heat-Shrink-Tubing-Black-5-Pack-HS-250B/311129143 The size or diameter tubing you will need depends on the size clamping area that your hemostats have. I have several different sizes to fit the different size hemostats I have. I’ve purchased heat shrink tubing off of Amazon before, but it wasn’t as long as the tubing that I bought from Home Depot and so it didn’t cover the entire length of the clamping area. I’m sure there are longer pieces, but I haven’t taken the time yet to search them out. I place the tubing over one side of the clamping area and use my heat gun to warm it until it shrinks tightly around the teeth area. If there is excess tubing beyond the end of the hemostats, I cut it off with a pair of scissors. Then I repeat the process with the other side of the hemostats.
The tutorial videos that I have on YouTube show how to use the hemostats to make the mandala design - so I won’t get into a long explanation about that part. However, I want to warn you that the hemostats can come unlocked and pop off the shirt. Since the folds for a mandala are thick - the hemostats are under a lot of tension. If they unlock and pop off the shirt - they can fly quite a long way across the room. I want to warn you so that you or someone around you doesn’t get injured from a hemostat that pops. Caution should be used too when moving an item that has hemostats attached.
I hope you have a lot of fun being creative and making beautiful mandalas using hemostats!
Some of the links above are for Amazon items, and I am an Amazon Associate. Therefore, if you click or purchase through these links I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.