1 - Pick your dyes
Tap a dye to add it to the craft. You can add the same dye more than once, up to 8 dyes per leather piece.
2 - Starting color (optional)
Undyed leather is #A06540 but does not feed the formula. Only an already-dyed piece counts as an input, so leave this off when you start from plain leather.
Result
In the craft (2)
When you combine leather armor with dyes in a crafting table, Minecraft averages the red, green and blue values of every input, then multiplies all three channels by a gain factor so the mix stays bright. The result is one new color, and the order of the dyes never matters, only which dyes and how many of each.
The exact rule, the same one this calculator runs, has three steps. First it adds up the red, green and blue of each input and divides by the count to get an average for each channel. Second it computes a gain factor: the average of each input's single brightest channel, divided by the largest of the three averaged channels. Third it multiplies each averaged channel by that gain factor and truncates to a whole number. The multiply happens before the divide, which is why the in-game result can differ by a point or two from a naive midpoint.
The gain factor is what keeps mixes from turning into dark mud. Without it, averaging a bright red and a bright blue would give a dull medium tone. With it, the result is pushed back up toward the brightness of the original dyes, so two vivid dyes still make a vivid mix. That is also why your finished armor often looks a shade lighter and more saturated than you might expect from a flat average.
An undyed leather piece does not feed the formula at all, it just starts brown. But once a piece is already dyed, its current color counts as one more input on the next craft. That is how you layer dyes across multiple crafts to creep toward a precise shade.
A few popular two and three dye mixes and the exact color they produce on a plain leather piece. Every hex below comes straight from the mixing formula, so you can match them in game by combining those dyes with the armor in one craft.
| Dyes combined | Result hex | Looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Red + Blue | #AD5398 | A dusky purple |
| Red + White | #D79894 | Soft salmon pink |
| Blue + Green | #759393 | Muted teal |
| Red + Yellow | #D78331 | Warm orange |
| Black + White | #8B8E90 | Neutral gray |
| Purple + Pink | #D569C6 | Bright orchid |
| Lime + Light Blue | #66D088 | Spring green |
| Red + Red + Blue | #AE4368 | Red-weighted plum |
| Orange + Yellow + White | #FCC973 | Pale gold |
Adding the same dye more than once weights the mix toward it: 2 red plus 1 blue lands on a redder plum than 1 red plus 1 blue. Use the calculator above to test any combination of up to 8 dyes before you spend the materials in game.
Because the formula averages and rounds, most arbitrary hex codes are not reachable by crafting alone, you can only get close by stacking dyes. If you need a precise hex, the calculator also shows a decimal value next to RGB. That is the dyed_color component value, and a give or item command using it sets the color exactly, with no rounding.
To wipe a color and start over, dunk the dyed leather in a water cauldron: it returns to the default undyed brown and each wash uses one of the cauldron's three water levels. There is no way to remove a single dye from a mix, so washing back to plain leather is the only reset.
Place a piece of leather armor in a crafting grid together with 1 to 8 dyes. Minecraft averages the red, green and blue of every input, then brightens the result by a gain factor so the mix is not muddy. The order you place the dyes does not matter, only which dyes and how many of each. Hoppers, water and crafting do not change the rule: it is always the same averaging formula.
Up to 8 dyes in a single craft, because the crafting grid has 9 slots and one is taken by the armor piece. You can place the same dye multiple times, for example 2 red plus 1 blue, to weight the mix toward that color. To go further you re-dye the already-colored piece in another craft, and its current color then counts as one more input.
Decide on the dyes that average to the shade you want, combine them with the leather piece in a crafting table, and repeat on the result to fine-tune. This calculator does the math for you: add dyes, read off the hex and RGB, and adjust until it matches. For an exact target color, a command using the dyed_color component with the decimal value shown here is the only way to hit a precise hex.
Yes. Put the dyed leather armor in a water cauldron and the color is removed, returning the piece to the default undyed brown. Each wash uses one of the cauldron's three water levels. There is no way to subtract a single dye from a mix, so washing back to plain leather and starting over is the only reset.
The mixing formula multiplies the averaged channels by a gain factor equal to the average of each input's brightest channel divided by the brightest averaged channel. That keeps mixes vivid instead of dark, but it also nudges the result toward a lighter, more saturated version of the average rather than a flat midpoint between the dyes.
No. The formula only sums and averages the channels, so 2 red and 1 blue gives the same color whether you place the blue first or last. The only thing that changes the result is the set of dyes, how many of each, and whether the armor was already dyed when you started.
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