KNITSTER

Hello all!

It’s photo time to show some of the fruits of my labor this weekend that is fiber related.

First, I’ll show my dying success. I got my son involved, so the color choices are his (I certainly wouldn’t have chosen this color combo, but hey, he’s a kid, I can put up with it.) We used the Kool-Aid method of dying, except instead of boiling or microwaving, we did it the sun tea method! We mixed each color in a different ziploc bags, and then put the bags in a central container so as not to leak (we couldn’t close them completely since parts were undyed and hanging out), and left it in the sun for a while. The yarn soaked up the dye and left the clear water like it was supposed to. So after it was done, it got rinsed and washed well in my sink, as seen here:

Then, I hung it to dry, and after it was dry, I photographed the colors:

Last, I spent a good part of today and tonight untangling and rolling the sucker into a big ol’ ball.

Overall, I’d consider it a success, but I definitely would use better quality yarn (I had used Lion Brand Fisherman’s wool), and made a better colorway instead. Heck, it was a grand experiment (it’s not everyone everyday who dyes almost 500 yards of yarn in Kool Aid), and my son enjoyed helping with it. It made him feel important.

The other project was my first foray into felting. I had made a prototype of a new change purse for myself (long story, but the original leather one from Paris, France was destroyed), so I decided to try to make my own. The first one was too large, but the second one came out great.

While it still shows some stitch definition, it’s not much. And the zipper top is from the original one, so I recycled it. It lives on in this reincarnation!

So, I’ve been busy this weekend. I think this means I have to go back to the baby blanket. After all, my sister is due in about a month, so I should finish the thing once and for all!

Posted on May 30th, 2006 by Dani
Filed under: Finished Objects, Photos