So, remember those Calvin Klein ads from the early 90s? The ones that looked like they were set in a basement and all creepy? Well, that’s my bathroom. Behold, a makeshift dye lab, made of a tension bar and a bucket! This is a Louet Hand Dyed Sock Kit, it will eventually be a pair of socks and then it will live at Webs. It’s like a mash-up of girlie colors and animal print. I followed the directions to the letter and they didn’t say to unwind the skanks (skein-hanks) so I left them wound and ended up with lots of white spaces! I thought I’d saturated them pretty well, burrowing the squeeze bottle nozzle into the skein, but apparently not. Oh well, I tend to like a lot of white in my sock yarn.
This is what it looks like wound up:
I started plying the Spunky Eclectic BFL in Monkey Farts. It has a really pretty translucent quality, very pale milk chocolate brown and vanilla pudding yellow, okay, now I feel like Homer Simpson. It was very easy to draft, and since I don’t have plans for it I experimented with TPI and different drafting techniques (from the fold, semi-woolen spun, etc.) and now I’m plying it in a very haphazard manner, seeing what happens when I treadle really quickly and barely support the yarns (a tightly wound Koigu-ish effect) or when I treadle slowly and let the twist into the singles slowly (a calmer, softer effect, with a bit of a barber-pole effect).
After consulting this I know that I’ve been stripping and pre-drafting and plying two identical (in theory, they don’t match up because I’m still pretty uneven) bobbins together which should yield a somewhat self-striping yarn. It’s fun learning on my own, but I can already tell I’m going to get lots of bad habits this way. It’s also a problem that I don’t really know the technical side of what I’m doing. For instance, ratios? No idea.
Secret knitting continues!
Speaking of dying, Gail/Kangaroo Dyer was the guest on Ready, Set, Knit this week! It was a great interview. She is great about inviting people to come dye with her but I’ve never been tempted, I just don’t think dying is for me. All I could think of during the process was A. I’m screwing this up and it will be ugly and a waste of Louet, B. this is messy, C. this is wasteful (all the water, the microwaving and the Saran Wrap/plastic bags)! Also, there are sooOOooo many already dyed yarns that I love. Fiesta Baby Boom in Plum Pudding (I don’t even like pink!), Pigeonroof’s Nightshade and this sushi colorway from Keegan Lane Yarns, and so on and so on…
CR
Skrilla Knits 
I just got a wheel too, and I’m going through the same sort of fears of picking up bad habits as you. My boyfriend gave me classes with a local spinner extraordinaire for Christmas so I hope to nip them in the bud. But I also heard that there is no wrong way to spin, so there must be some trade-off. Thank you for the link to Nightshade. I absolutely adore the cinamon rose roving. It’s my kind of dirty :). Look forward to watching your spinning “learning curve”, while I brave my own.
I think you did a nice job with your first dye attempt! I hear you on the wastefulness of it all. I reuse the saran as much as possible and use cotton towels, etc.
That new design is beautiful! Can’t wait to see what it becomes!!!!
I haven’t tried dying yet either but have to say I am tempted…no idea when I’ll get around to it though!! Love the yarn you’ve been spinning….and thanks for the sneaky peek!
Okay, juvenile though it may be, I can’t stop laughing over “Monkey Farts.” If one were to pair knitting with beer, it would go perfectly with Butt Monkey Chimp Chiller Ale.
And the beads in your secret knitting are gorgeous!
I think the yarn turned out great. But I don’t think I’ll ever get into dying. I like supporting everyone else’s work.
I heard the interview with Gail and I thought it was great. She really sounds like the perfect person to watch and learn from.
I have little interest in dying — just too messy for me! Too much to set up and clean up. And you’re right — lots of great things out there already!
Love (!) the secret knitting & the monkey farts. Is that the ladybug wheel? Covet.
Did you have fun dyeing your first yarn? It looks great. I like lots of white in my sock yarn too now.
Love the colour of your Spunky Eclectic yarn.
And the secret knitting looks gorgeous – I am really looking forward to that reveal.