Embellishing has created a small stash issue for me. I have a huge collection of small and very small amounts of wool in many different colours and weights. The problem, however, is that it’s never enough. There is always one colour missing, one colour which cannot be found. The solution is to make my own – as I did with the red fox in the Gingerbread Man set.
I prefer semi-solid colours, so I’m not too fastidious about ensuring even dye uptake.
This is the method I have found which produces the type of coloured yarn I prefer. I have used this method with as little as 2 or 4 metres of yarn or as much as 50 grams.
You will need: wool, vinegar (pure, 100% vinegar – many cheaper vinegars are diluted with water), food colourings, cling film, microwaveable bowls, microwave, scissors.
1. Wind the yarn around a large flat object such as a book or plastic tub lid. Tie scraps of wool loosely around the newly wound hank in 3 or 4 places.
In this example I have used approx 30 grams of 10ply/worsted organic merino.
2. Soak the hank in a bowl of vinegar for at least half an hour, a few hours, or as long as overnight. The longer soaking times will aid the even uptake of dye, but as I said, that’s not a high priority for me.
I soaked it for half an hour.
3. Remove the hank from the vinegar and add the colouring of your choice to the bowl of vinegar.
I used 1.5 capfuls of black food colouring.
4. Replace the hank into the coloured vinegar. Turn the hank over gently a few times.
(If you want a far less even colour distribution you could skip these steps and add the dye straight to the hank in vinegar).
5. Cover the bowl with cling film and microwave for 1-2 minutes (depending on the amount of liquid and yarn in the bowl). Rest it for 1-2 minutes, microwave it again. Continue this until you have microwaved the yarn 2-4 times, or until the vinegar is clear. Once your vinegar is clear, or mostly clear, around the edges of your yarn you can remove the bowl from the microwave.
The clear vinegar is visible in this, and the next, photo.
6. Carefully peel back the cling film, being wary of escaping steam, and allow the yarn to rest. You can remove the yarn from the hot liquid, resting it on a heat-proof surface such as a baking dish.
8. Once it is cool enough to handle, rinse the yarn under water which is the same temperature as the yarn until the water runs clear. Gently squeeze the hank to remove excess water. Hang up your hank to dry and begin planning your embellishment.
There are many other tutorials out there, demonstrating different dyes – acid dyes, kool aid, jelly – and different techniques – steamer, oven, stovetop – so try one and experiment until you find the method which suits you.
