Playing with Dyes

There have been so many things going on during these past few months. Work, visiting family, teaching, and definitely knitting has been taking up my time. I am still addicted to one-by-one colorwork cowls, having now made eight of them, and am teaching how to do these at a LYS to me. It has been fun to see the colors that the students work with, the weights of yarns they are using, and how they are making the pattern their own. During this last session I started a DK/worsted weight cowl, as the student wanted to use that weight in her cowl, and I am liking it. I won’t make a lot in that weight, as I like the fingering ones better and I have more yarn in that weight, but I will do a few more in the DK weight.

The real interest these past two months has been in the dye pots. I have had such a fun time playing with colors on bare yarn, to see if I can match the colors of an object that is replicated on the yarn. There is something very satisfying to see the vision in my head or on the picture come to life on the yarn.

When I showed my siblings the above photo, one sister said it looked like a pot of green noodles and now I can’t unsee that. The green yarn was dyed yesterday and will be used as a coordinating skein, as well as three other colors which are all now currently drying on the clothes rack.

One of the first yarns I dyed was this one…..

I used this set of dishes as the inspiration…..

When I showed the two previous pictures in my sibling/mom/aunt group chat, my aunt said that she had just been wondering what had happened to that set of dishes and that I had captured the colors pretty accurately. I have since replicated this colorway without much variation. When I put the two batches together, the only difference is that the second contrast color is a little darker pink which matches the bowl better.

I am using two 50 gram skeins as a mix and match fingering set. It has been fun to put matching skeins together to see what color combination I can come up with. In order for others to see what the yarn will look like knitted up, I took a set of Grandma’s Breakfast Dishes and started knitting with it.

The Love Story Sock is by Kay F. Jones and was available for their Bakery Bears Patreon Valenvent event which ran through February 14th. Sorry, the picture of the sock is a little dark as it was taken on an airplane at dusk with the lights out. I am really liking how this sock is turning out and I frequently stop knitting just to admire what I have accomplished so far. One sock is finished and the second sock is twenty rounds until I start the heel. Soon there will be a pair of socks to add to the gift box and there will be a picture attached to show the family member recipient where the color came from.

What am I going to do with all the yarn I’m dyeing you ask. Well, I’m hoping to have skeins available at the yarn store where I occasionally teach and possibly here on the website, but that is for a future date. Right now, I’m just having fun and selling a mix & match set whenever anyone asks.

Thanks for reading and keeping up with me.

Until next time, make it a great knitting day!