How I Prep a New Bottle of Colorant

A note about links: If we include links to retail sites like Amazon or elsewhere, it's because we either use the items ourselves in our own shop or they're relevant to the topic. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

Here’s the fast and simple routine I do to get new colorants ready before I use them for the first time. I realize it seems like prepping a bottle of colorant is a pretty straightforward thing to do, but there are a few tips and gotchas to look out for that I hope will help beginners.

What you need

A new bottle of colorant. This one is LureWorks Watermelon Green Dye 241, a 4 oz bottle.
A nozzle cap with a tip cap. It comes with the colorant.
Ball bearings. They help mix the colorant when you shake the bottle before use. Mine came from a kit I got on Amazon. I use the larger 7mm and 8mm ones, one per bottle.
A small metal rod, preferably with a pointed tip. I use my probe thermometer because it’s always on hand, the point makes it easy to penetrate the plastic, and I get a consistent-size hole in every bottle.
A microfiber cloth or your shop towel of choice. It’s used when shaking the bottle before each use, so you don’t fling colorant everywhere (speaking from experience), and to wipe the bottle down, because many colorants seem to travel up and out of their bottles, some far worse than others.

A new bottle of LureWorks Watermelon Green colorant with its stock cap on, a red probe thermometer, a clear nozzle cap with a red tip cap, a small bag of ball bearings, and a white microfiber cloth on a wood table — Everything for one bottle.

Prep the bottle

Take the stock cap off and carefully pull out the inner protector lid if it contains one. Don’t force it, or you’ll have a freshly spatter-dyed shirt you didn’t plan for.
Drop in a ball bearing (or a small nut, if you have some on hand). I use 7 to 8mm.
Screw on the nozzle cap and tighten it firmly to prevent leakage.
Take the tip cap off and carefully poke the nozzle tip open with the probe thermometer or a similar item. Use the cloth or rag to wipe off any colorant that may find its way onto the shaft of whatever tool you used.
Put the tip cap back on, and you’re ready to go.

Looking down into the neck of the open colorant bottle, the red protector lid still in place — Step 1: stock cap off, inner protector lid still in.

Pulling the red protector lid out of the neck of the bottle — Carefully pull the protector lid out.

Dropping a ball bearing into the open bottle of green colorant — Step 2: drop in a ball bearing.

Screwing the clear nozzle cap, red tip cap on, onto the colorant bottle — Step 3: screw on the nozzle cap.

Poking the nozzle tip open with the probe of a thermometer, the red tip cap set aside on the table — Step 4: poke the tip open with the probe.

The nozzle cap seen from straight above, a small hole in the center of the tip — The opened tip, from above.

A white microfiber cloth wrapped over the nozzle and top of the colorant bottle, held in one hand — A cloth over the nozzle and top before shaking.

Now go make some killer colors without turning your shop or shirt into a piece of modern art! While you’re here and ready to create, I recommend downloading the free Bait Color Formulation Kit to make that easier too.

Where to go next

Formulation Kit Free printable cards for tracking your own colors. Beginners guide The gear and supplies to get started. Hook Book Exact recipes for every Crusher color.