Hand Painting Yarn

Some gals got together last night at Under the Son Farm for a yarn painting class. Theresa’s basement is a moth’s idea of heaven. I mean can you imagine being able to just go shop your own basement when you’re ready to start a new project. *sigh*

The dye process is really quite simple. The most difficult part is choosing which colors to work with. We played around with methods of applying the dye to the yarn. Some preferred the slosh and smoosh method.

While others preferred a more controlled spooning application.

The best part of doing it in a group like this is to watch and learn by what everyone else does.

After applying the dye the yarn gets cooked in the microwave for a few minutes then allowed to cool completely. It is surprising how the color changes and blends.

It is also interesting to see how the dye looks on colored yarn. The skein below started as a grey yarn giving it a heathered look.

A good time was had by all, so much so we considered making this a regular event.

I came home with two skeins of  dyed sock yarn. One with my favorite harvest colors with a very blended look. Then another with colors outside of my comfort zone with more defined stripes to allow me to understand better how the colors will look once they are knitted up.

I have to say, I learned a lot during this class.  The most important thing being that I need more sheep. Lots more sheep.  White ones. Lots of white ones.