Patent ID: 8439980

Claim:
A method of treating a textile, the method comprising the steps of: (i) treating a textile with an aqueous solution of a blue or violet cationic azine dye, the aqueous solution comprising from 1 ppb to 1 ppm of the blue or violet cationic azine dye; and, from 0.0 g/L to 3 g/L of a surfactant; and, (ii) optionally rinsing and drying the textile, wherein the blue or violet cationic azine dye is not covalently bound to a negatively charged substituent, the azine dye selected from the following structure: wherein An− is a negative anion; rings A and B are absent or only one of rings A and B are present; Y is selected from: —NHAr, wherein Ar is unsubstituted or substituted and is naphthyl or phenyl; X is selected from H; C1-C4 branched or linear alkyl; and when Y is selected from: X may also be selected from—NR 1 R 2 , wherein R 1 and R 2 are selected from a polyether chain, benzyl, phenyl, amine substituted benzyl, amine substituted phenyl, COCH 3 , a linear or branched alkyl chain; a linear or branched alkyl chain which may be substituted by one or more groups selected from: ester groups; Cl; F; CN; OH; CH 3 O—; C 2 H 5 O—; and, phenyl; NHR 1 ; and, wherein when rings A and B are absent and when Y=—NHAr then X may also be selected from: —NH 2 ; —NHAr; and, —NHR 1 .