butterflydreaming (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
butterflydreaming) wrote2012-09-23 05:47 pm
butterflydreaming) wrote2012-09-23 05:47 pm
I dyed yarn!
For literally years, I have wanted to use the expired inks at my workplace to dye fiber. I tried tie dye without knowing what I was doing; as one might expect, that was unsuccessful. The dye all washed out.
This time I finally got it through my head that there are different processes for cotton and wool. Sometimes I am not smart! Thanks toshadowyn, I learned that wool yarn can be dyed using a microwave. Which we have at work.
A couple of weeks ago I found a cone of yarn that appeared to be wool. It was white and cost me only $3.50 because it was a half price day. That plus a $2 bottle of white vinegar and the surplus, expired dyes that have no other use added up to a fun day of successful yarn dying.
I measured off lengths sufficient for making a cute bag pattern that I found on Ravelry. Tanya and I soaked these in 50/50 vinegar and water until our breaks came up. Then we poured over some dyes and put the yarn into second-use ziplock bags. These went into the microwave for a minute a piece. We left them to cool.
I figured that wool would happily take dye, and the method we used is the same as when dying with food color.
Total win!
This time I finally got it through my head that there are different processes for cotton and wool. Sometimes I am not smart! Thanks to
shadowyn, I learned that wool yarn can be dyed using a microwave. Which we have at work.A couple of weeks ago I found a cone of yarn that appeared to be wool. It was white and cost me only $3.50 because it was a half price day. That plus a $2 bottle of white vinegar and the surplus, expired dyes that have no other use added up to a fun day of successful yarn dying.
I measured off lengths sufficient for making a cute bag pattern that I found on Ravelry. Tanya and I soaked these in 50/50 vinegar and water until our breaks came up. Then we poured over some dyes and put the yarn into second-use ziplock bags. These went into the microwave for a minute a piece. We left them to cool.
I figured that wool would happily take dye, and the method we used is the same as when dying with food color.
Total win!
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i got a bunch of ideas from http://www.dyeyouryarn.com/ - they have plenty of definitions and troubleshooting info. for future reference, you can probably cut way back on the vinegar. i had success with just 3 tablespoons in the dyebath.
the expired ink sounds like a great gimmick for a business - expired ink to dye yarn recycled from thriftstore sweaters.
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The photos I took are really bad. This phone's camera sucks since a system update. I'll dig out my actual camera and do a group photo soon.