But then I did.
Before I continue, there is an introduction video on my YouTube that I want everybody to look at and give me constructive criticism. You can see it here.
Getting back to the topic at hand, I briefly read up on dyeing car seats and came to the conclusion that it's too much of a mess. I heard sometimes it can end up staining other things... No thanks!
But yesterday the thought came to me again. I took a look at the available products and while there is dyes, there is also vinyl paint.
To be honest, I was so excitedly shocked by how well this stuff works. It costs $5 per can and that was enough to do the floormatts pictured above although you would get more use on plastic and vinyl surfaces like your dash. See, carpet obviously has a bunch of fibers which need to be brushed back and forth as you put down layers to cover everything.
I will try to find the type that you can apply with a brush. That would make things even easier because you wouldn't necessarily have to remove each panel to paint it if you know what you're doing (stay tuned for a tutorial).
By now, the most astute of my readers should have a good idea of how to use this stuff. It also has directions on the bottle. But let me lead you through the procedure so you can see how easy this is.
It took me about twenty minutes to paint both floormatts.
You will typically want to remove each item for painting for two reasons. The first is so that you can cover everything (edges that you might miss, for example) and so you don't spray something else in your car! If you're going to leave the part inside, get the paint you can apply with a brush at the very least.
Here is the procedure for the spray kind. I will post the same thing when I get my hands on the stuff you apply with a brush.
(Tip: These vinyl paints is exactly what manufacturers like Ford use. It is the same pigment [chemically] and if you DO have a Ford or GM vehicle, you can buy the original colors that came with your car. I wanted to mention that because that gave me confidence to know it's a legit product.)
Here we go. You are going to paint the item in question in about four coats. Use as many as you need to make it look right. If you spray it completely the first time, it won't look right.
Hold the spray can about six inches away and paint in even strokes back and forth. You want the paint to go from left to right as opposed to applying it chaotically.
Wait five minutes and add another coat. Remember, the item you are painting will be EVENLY covered in the end if you follow this method. For carpets, you want to initially comb the fibers one way and comb them the other way about halfway through the job. That is what's going to cover everything (the paint needs to get in the fibers). Continue adding coats until the item in question is completely covered. It's okay to quickly spray spots that you missed.
I need to start taking 'before' pictures more often so you can see the difference but here are the finished floormatts in my car. Before I painted it, both matts were a completely different color from the front ones. They were stained almost orange. Now look at the difference something so small can create.
(Tip: Let it dry for 30 minutes before you put it in your car or it's going to smell like paint for a little while.)
I'm going to dig up old pictures of the car for you guys so you can actually see the difference.
One of my concerns when I bought the car was the ugly and somewhat dirty interior. I was originally going to reupholster pretty much everything to change the color. Now that I found out about this product, my next big interior project is giving the car a black and silver interior. I'm thinking silver for the lighter browns and black for the darker browns such as the dashboard.
Thank you guys for reading! I hope you were entertained or at least learned something.
Comment if you have any questions or comments and I will definitely reply.
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