Kool-Aid Dyeing

How much fun can you have with a packet of Slammin' Strawberry Kiwi and a packet of Tropical Punch? Quite a lot it seems....

I bought a Hip Knits 'Dye your own Sock Yarn' kit from Get Knitted and as the sun was shining this weekend, it seemed the perfect time to wash, dye and, more importantly dry, some yarn. I know that some of you may have read this stuff elsewhere but here's a recap (not least for my own record).

I knew that I wanted stripey socks so I started out by casting on 60 stitches on my dpns and knitting a few rounds to work out the length of stripe that I wanted (I used a dot of washable felt-tip to mark the beginning and end of the appropriate row - I didn't include the cast-on). I unravelled the knitting, then measured between the two dots. A length of 258cm gave me a three-row stripe. I wanted to make a dark pink stripe, a lighter pink stripe and a cream (original yarn colour) stripe. Therefore, three stripes worth of yarn was 774cm. Time for a large hank. The chairs were 774cm apart and I marked off three sections of 258cm with contrasting yarn. (I had to employ a couple of knit pixies to sit on the chairs as I wound - a how-not-to-build-a-bridge project).

I then washed the yarn in some mild detergent and rinsed it. I mixed the two packets of Kool-Aid seperately in ice-cream tubs and then placed a yarn section in each one, topping it up with water to cover the yarn. (Note: the paler pink took very fast - I'd act quicker next time to ensure consistent colour). The yarn then went into the microwave for a couple of two-minute bursts on high power. I stopped when the water was clear, indeed I was surprised to see how clear the water was once the yarn was lifted out.

Once the yarn had cooled, I rinsed the hank again (in warmish water to match its temperature - didn't want to run the risk of felting it) and then hung it out to dry. Can you see how well the colours took? So exciting...

A few hours of blowing merrily in the wind and the skein was dry and ready to twist into a skein (hold it arms length apart and twist in opposite directions, the yarn will twist around itself until you can tuck the ends over each other).

Of course the proof of the pudding is in the eating, so I cast on my 60 stitches...

It worked! And it smells nice too....

Posted by Anita at June 8, 2006 01:06 PM