The new Knit Picks catalog arrived in yesterday's mail, and the feature is dyeing your own yarn, the first pages are all books and dyes and really cheap merino wool for experimentation. I fear a new addiction.... I know I said I wasn't going to buy more yarn, but fingering weight merino wool for $3.49 for 440 yards, oh come on! It's like the siren song - "It's okay, you can buy more yarn just for THIS purpose...." And I did want to make some fingerless gloves...(yes, this is the rationalization of an addict who doesn't want to admit she has a problem.)
The Kool-Aid skeins are dry and I'm itching to knit one up and see how it wears - I think the light colors will be fine but I'm a bit concerned about bleeding from the black cherry, it seemed pretty intense. I rinsed it really thoroughly, but I'm going to do a test swatch and abuse it a bit. The next skeins will be multicolored, the blue and green looked so nice together hanging side by side, I think it'd be really pretty all in one skein, and would make a cute little girl bucket hat, or even a big girl hat. It won't felt, of course, because the wool was "frost white" but even in the non-felted version it'd be fun. So yeah, it's sad, I have a new addiction and I might as well surrender to it.
I did not bring the sweater to yesterday's mediation after all, because I'm nearing the point where I have to separate stitches for the sleeves, etc., and I was in a rush to get out the door and drive downtown and find a place to park. The case did not settle, dammit. What drop-down do I use on the expense report form to get the last two days of my life back?
This is unsolicited advice and may be unwanted, but if you are going to do a multicolor skein, I have found the very easiest way to do it is to paint the colors on with a paintbrush (I tried several other methods before finding this out). Dyeing is really a blast. Your skeins are beautiful!
ReplyDeleteCarolyn
http://carolynh.tblog.com
I use a spoon for adding colors. The paintbrush seemed to pull on the threads of the fibers. I pour one spoonful onto an area then use the back of the spoon to gently urge the liquid up or down the length of yarn or fiber.
ReplyDeletei have hand spooned yarn!
I was thinking of using a soft brush like a stencil brush - I don't think that would drag the fibers if I'm patting - but I like the spoon idea too. What dye brands would you suggest? The stuff Knit Picks is featuring is kinda pricey.
ReplyDeleteYes, those Gaywool Dyes are pretty expensive. That is what I have used, but only because someone else bought them for me. Other sites, such as Copper Moose, sell these a little cheaper than the Knit Picks site. I must say that they last forever and ever though, or at least seem to in my case. A comparable product, I am told, and at half the price, is the Country Classic Wool Dyes, http://www.piecesofstring.net/Country%20Classic%20Dyes.htm, $5.40 per jar. With either of these products, vinegar is not needed. Jacquard Acid Dyes are also moderately priced, but you do add vinegar to them. Cushings Dyes are a lot less expensive, but come in little paper envelopes - I have never tried them, as I figured they would make a horrible mess, at least in my clumsy hands.
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