Have now finished winding all the dyed skeins into balls on the wool winder. Aren't they pretty all together? The trick has been trying to get photos that match the exact colouring of the yarn. You think it has taken perfectly, then download the pics to find a totally different shade and spend the rest of the day on photoshop trying to 'match' the colours in dismal light because it hasn't stopped raining in, oh, a month? Sorry about the moan, I'm just getting sun withdrawal symptoms (SAD). I heard a new one the other day - CRAP - consistant rain affected person! Don't know if it's real or not but it should be if it isn't!
Anyway, more close-ups of the yarn..... If you look closely to the bottom right of the picture above, you can see the purply one has lost its centre. That's because it is sneakily attached to some knitting at the time of photo. Now it is finished, blocking and drying - slowly. I wanted to try the variegated yarns to see how they looked knitted.
Ach, well, now there's a story....
Dyed the yarn - okay overdyed the purple one to death, I admit - and the water ran clear on finishing. Hooray I thought.
Dried skein.
Dried skein.
Wound skein into ball.
Started knitting up yarn, la, la, la, la, la.
Started knitting up yarn, la, la, la, la, la.
Began noticing a steadily more obvious purple stain spreading over my palms and fingers as I knitted away.
Washed hands, carried on knitting.
Washed hands, carried on knitting.
Finished knitting.
Heather verity - isn't she nice?SUPER WASHED knitting to get rid of any excess dye. This is 100% merino wool so I tried hard not to felt the lovely knitting with too much agitation - marginally unsuccessful.
Tried vinegar, tried soap, dye decided to leave knitting rapidly and required 'gentle' rinsing, rinsing, rinsing.... hence a little felting.
As this has been knitted into a hat, it better not have any dye left in it! No-one wants a purple forehead or the colour to run in the rain!! Only joking - it won't run in the rain, can't promise no purple forehead!! Anyways, lesson learned! It's fine to improvise and overdye for creative projects but not if you want to have prolonged contact with the skin! I'm not even thinking of this in a top!
I'll leave you with some close-ups of the dyed yarns where you can see the variegations in the ball. Tomorrow, hopefully the beret will be dry enough after it's vigorous washing to be modelled and photographed - if the light is okay and the rain stays away, just for a bit, please?
Hi Elaine,
ReplyDeleteI saw your woes with getting your hand dyed yarn to be colorfast after discovering that it is not when you're already knitting with it. Here's how to do it. Mix white vinegar with some cold water - submerge item with mixture in pot. Then, bring pot to a slow simmer. Let simmer for a good 20 mins to half hour. Try not to get it to a rolling boil as this could trigger the felting that we're trying to avoid. Then remove from the head, leaving the pot and item in the water, intact. Let cool. When it has returned to room temperature, remove item and rince in lukewarm/cool water. You should then have an item that's as colorfast as it's going to get.
Melissa (aka the crafty woman, aka yarn dyenasty dyepot slave)