it's comin............

the snow drops, hellebores and crocus have made their entrance...can spring be far behind?

i think not!!

better get your knit on as the garden will soon be calling your name!!!

and so it goes.....

“It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment.” —Ansel Adams

live and let dye!

well, i'm at it again and this time i'm doing a lot of pondering as to why i am so intrigued by processes.  or is it the product? and why is it that i just can't be satisfied with using what already exists and why do i have to go one step further and do it myself. this seems to be a constant that keeps recurring over and over. curious to say the least!

anyhoo, here we go again! i have discovered the art of dying yarn so now, not only can i knit with yarn but i can dye the yarn that i knit! jeepers! 

what necessitated this you might ask. well, i've had some yarn hangin' around for awhile the color of which did not blow my hair back so i knew that the only way i would use it was by changing the color soooooo i had to do it!! it really was like a gun was being held to my head!! i've only done this a couple of times but i can see that it can be addictive, very addictive! 

once you overcome the fear that is instilled from reading overly written directions and take the plunge it really isn't all that complicated! and the beauty of dying with wilton cake dyes is that you're not putting your life in danger by using scary chemicals - heck, we eat this crap every time we have a piece of bakery cake that is loaded with three inches of frosting! no masks or respirators, no full body or head covering - just a pair of household gloves so your hands don't

look creepy for the next couple of days!

so here goes!

1. get yourself some wilton cake dye (you can obtain at a cake decorating store, walmart, craft stores such as michael's, etc.). pick the colors that will make your day! while you are out and about, score yourself a gallon jug of white (clear) vinegar. if you haven't gotten on the ecological bandwagon yet i'm sure that you must have several empty plastic water bottles with lids hangin' around (you need these for your dye mix); if you really are attempting to save the planet, find some plastic containers with tight fitting lids that will hold a quart or so of liquid.

2. get yourself some 100% wool yarn and make it into a skein (heck, you might get lucky and have it that way already!). your skeins should be tied together in four places an equal distance around the yarn. i had nine balls of rowan 'big wool' to dye so i made nine skeins (the back of a chair works great for creating skeins!)

3. take a clean bucket and fill it with a 50/50 combo of water and vinegar (i mix 4 cups of vinegar with 4 cups of cool water). place one of your skeins of yarn into this mixture (be sure it is completely wet and submerged). let it soak for thirty minutes, then wring out (over the bucket) and place in a plastic bag and twist the bag shut. repeat with all of your skeins. do not throw this water away when you are done soaking your skeins, it will be used again!

4. while your yarn is soaking (this is the longest part of this whole process!), put on your gloves and mix up your dye by placing a teaspoon (give or take) of your dye in one of your plastic

bottles. add a cup of boiling hot water, secure the top and shake the bottle until all of the dye is completely mixed (i do this over the sink for safety's sake) - this could have dire consequences if not completely mixed so, give it an extra shake or two. then fill the bottle to the top with cool water. voila, your dye is ready.

5. cover your counter top or table with a large garbage or dry cleaning bag. tape it down here and there along the sides and on the corners so it doesn't move. place another bag on top of this bag that is large enough to lay your skein of yarn on with about six inches on all sides. you can see that in these photos. have a couple of rags ready to help with spills and drips! now you're ready to have some fun!

6. you can apply your dye to the yarn in a variety of ways - use a plastic spoon, a foam brush, or my favorite, plastic squeeze bottles (the kind that hold mustard and ketchup). make sure you have your gloves on while applying the dye to your yarn. there shouldn't be great gobs of dye on the plastic - your yarn should be absorbing it! remember to check the underside of your yarn so that you have no undyed yarn (unless that's a look you're going for!). keep your rags handy for accidents!

the yarn in this picture has had four colors applied: teal, moss green, purple and a bit of black.

7. after you have applied your dye, fold the plastic up around your yarn (i fold the ends of the plastic over first, and then the sides over and then fold the plastic and yarn in half - this is like a burrito wrap - the point is to cover your yarn completely so it can steam) and place on a glass plate that is microwave safe.

8. place the glass plate in the microwave. set it for a lovely 5 minute steam bath at 50% power.

CAUTION, when done, carefully remove the HOT plate (use potholders!!) and carefully unwrap your yarn and place it in the bucket of vinegar water (remember - you saved it from an earlier step!). let the yarn rest for 5 minutes in this mixture. this is the final dye set! 
9. next rinse your dyed yarn in cool water - this will help remove the aromatic vinegar scent. your water should be clear at this point!
10. wring your yarn out and hang it to dry - i let it drip dry in my shower.
11. when dry, ball it up and ta da, you've got new and exciting yarn to knit with! yippee!!

a purl of wisdom from the yarn harlot

this quote from stephanie pearl-mcphee was on my calendar yesterday and i thought it was priceless sooooooo... here goes:

"i knit a lot when i am bored, annoyed, or ticked off. i know i'm using knitting to turn a situation that would normally be really hard to tolerate into something that i like. in fact, there are probably a lot of situations where i wouldn't be at all nice if i didn't have my knitting with me. if i have a reputation as a kind, tolerant, patient person, i probably owe it all to knitting."

and so it goes!!