Saturday, December 8, 2012

Yarn Dyeing Tutorial

Tie the skein in 4 different places so that it does not get tangled during
 the dyeing and rinsing process.  Be sure to leave it loose so
that the dye will take evenly and not leave a white line on the yarn.
Wet yarn thoroughly.  Fold skein in half and lay
in an aluminum turkey roaster.  I lay 2 skeins side
by side.  Then add a splash of vinegar.  Select and
sprinkle 2-5 different colors of dye powder on the
yarn.  Keep in mind that the dyes will run and blend
somewhat, so if you use two colors that will form brown,
be sure to keep them separate.   In this dye bath,
I am using red and avacado,  so between them, I have
put a buffer of teddybear brown. 
Using the sprayer nozzle on your sink, wet down
the dye powder thoroughly.  It will wash down into
the yarn.  Put just enough water in the pan so that when
you push down on the yarn with a spoon, it is covered
with water.  Use the spoon to squish the yarn into the
dye so that it takes the color evenly and does not
leave white or light spots. 
Put the pan into the oven, and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
The yarn should be steaming when you remove it from the
oven.  Let it sit and cool; often it will absorb more dye
and exhaust the dyebath during the cooling process.
Once it is cooled, dump the yarn into the sink and drain it, then
rinse until the water is clear.  The last rinse should have a conditioner
in it, to give the yarn a silky softness and bring out the sheen in the wool.
Here is a finished skein.
And its ready to photograph.  I twist the yarn as though I am going
to skein it, and then coil it into a ball.  

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