Hi, all! I’m popping into your feeds today with an “On My Hook” post to show you a very fun project I have been working on! I guess this post should really be called, “In My Dye Pan” and “On My Hook” because this project started out with me trying my hand at hand-dyeing yarn for the very first time!
The Dyeing
A while back, I ordered a DIY yarn dyeing kit from Breann at Hooked on Homemade Happiness. Before this project, I had never dyed yarn before so it was definitely an adventure. The kit comes with the essentials: 2 skeins of superwash merino wool, citric acid, three pots of powder dye, gloves, a mask, and instructions. I headed out to my local dollar store to pick up some additional supplies: a foil pan (for the stove-top method. You can also do a microwave method!), bottles for mixing the dye, a tub for washing, and some tongs and measuring spoons (since you cannot use any of the tools for food once you’ve used them for dyeing).
My goal was to create a bright rainbow-type effect, although I did not go for traditional rainbow colours. Instead I attempted a couple of different shades of green, a turquoise, a bright purple, a magenta and a brighter pink: six colours in total!
The process was a little nerve-racking (I definitely thought I had dyed both skeins completely brown at one point) but it worked out surprisingly well for my first try! I learned a few things and look forward to trying dyeing again soon to try out some different techniques.
Here are some progress photos of the dyeing process:
The Pattern
As much as a I wanted to keep starting at these beautiful skeins forever, I also couldn’t wait to get them on my hook. Since I only had two skeins, I opted for a simple triangle scarf. The pattern I used was the Kitty’s Something New by Stephanie Fair.
Here are some progress photos of making the shawl, ending with some blocking (It’s easy to see why I decided to call this colour-way “Jelly Bean Jar”!)
Finally, I finished up by adding two tassels! Since I only had two skeins of my hand-dyed yarn, I didn’t have enough to make the tassels, so I opted to go with a coordinating colour. This vibrant green was one of the best matches for the colours in the shawl (I also considered a magenta but green won the day!). The yarn I used for the tassels is Loops & Threads Soft & Shiny in Citrus
(If you’re wondering how I got these tassels to look so damn near perfect the answer is: a handheld steamer
The Finished Piece
And finally, here is the finished Jelly Bean Jar Shawl!
I’m over the moon with the final piece. It is so colourful, which is a fun change from my usual, more neutral makes. But seriously, what a satisfying and exciting feeling to start a project from the very beginning in creating your own colour palate and dyeing your yarn to making something fun and wearable with it. 10/10 – totally recommend!
Have you tried dyeing yarn? Do you plan to? Let me know in the comments!
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I have been really interested in dying yarn lately. I’ve been reading anything and everything from Kool-Aid to avocados for dying. I’m also trying to learn blogging. I’m an old dog who needs new tricks, so the techie part has me stumped. But, I’ll ‘get’ it, eventually. You inspire me! Thank you!
The tech side of things was the biggest obstacle for me as well! But the more you do it, the more you learn and it gets easier each day. It’s been a fun journey! You should dive in and try a new trick! 😀
There are some good books out there on the subject of dying. Go to you local library to check them out!
LOVE LOVE LOVE the colours! A beautiful choice for your project!!
Love this!!!
The yarn (and shawl) turned out beautifully! You were able to make all those colors from the three Breann included in the kit? Did you just experiment with the colors to get the shades you wanted? I bought the same kit (plus two extra skeins!) but haven’t been brave enough to try it yet.
Yes! My kit came with yellow, magenta and blue dye so I did a little bit of research to figure out the best way to achieve some of the colours I wanted and from there it was mostly experimenting! I was not very scientific about it but next time I will try to pay better attention to the amount of water and the amount of dye I used so I can replicate the colourways if I want to. I would suggest using paper towels to do a little “dip test” for an accurate idea of the dye colour when you’re mixing, since it can look a lot different when it’s concentrated in a bottle. I was so nervous to try out my kit as well but it was so fun! Good luck!