Having so.much.fun with this dyeing thing

Can't.stop.dyeing. Anything that stands still for more than a few minutes gets thrown into the dyepot right now.

Behold.



The skein on the left was dyed using the method noted here. The skein on the right was done on the stovetop using the method outlined in this great tutorial, in my new (from the op shop) enamel dye pot.



It doesn’t show up well in the photo, but the pot even has a pouring lip on one side. I was beside myself with glee when I spied this at my local op/charity/thrift shop. And it’s black, so I feel like a proper witch with my very own cauldron. I already own black lace up boots so am cultivating the wild hair now.

The hand painted method give you more control of the placement of colour than the stove top method, but I’m pleased with both skeins. The stove top skein resulted in more muted colours and the dye didn’t penetrate all the way to the centre of the skein, so I either didn’t tie the hank loosely enough, or I was too timid in my gentle stirring. I was terribly afraid the wool would felt if I moved it around too much in the hot water. It’s all part of the learning curve. I think I’ll stick to hand painted dyeing, but wanted to mention the other method here as several commenters bemoaned their lack of a microwave.

Some other resources I found useful were these tutorials on dyeing here, here, and here. For Australian readers, bulk food dye can be purchased online here while undyed yarns (including sock yarn, yay!) are available here.

The skein on the left went to Perth last week in a parcel along with these …



The skein on the right is on my desk where I can rub it over my naked body and inhale its sheepy goodness admire it while waiting for my Olde Worlde Internette to load.

I have more skeins dyed and ready to show off, but I have to go get dressed and do some work now.

Until next time, yarn porn fans gentle readers.

In other news, Son #3 wore the cape and crown at school this morning. Sigh … nine years old.