One of my goals for this year is to learn to dye yarn with natural dyes. I love the idea of being able to walk out in the woods and fields and gather a basket full of bark or mushrooms or flowers, the way our ancestors would have done, and bring it home and create a rainbow of yarns! Plus, I am all about living as naturally as I possibly can. So....today I started my journey! I did not gather plants for this. I ordered a small starter kit of natural dyes to help me get the feel of dying, but soon I will be picking things from nature and growing my own plants to do my dying. I actually got my kit before Christmas but have been searching for a big used pot. I found one yesterday at a local "treasure" shop! After I got it home I noticed it was stamped USN. It is an old galley pot from the Navy!
This is some chunky spun corriedale that I decided to use. Chunky yarn is interesting and knits up fast plus in the book,
Harvesting Color by Rebecca Burgess, that I highly recommend if you are interested in natural dying, she dyes up a rainbow of chunky yarns and it just looks beautiful!
I used Logwood Purple for this. After reading about Logwood I probably won't use it in the future because it is not an easily sustainable dye and I can not gather it myself. It came in my little kit so of course I am going to use what I have but there are sooo many natural dye plants out there I see no reason to use one that is not abundant! I can see why it is in high demand though ,it is a beautiful color!
Here it is drying in the sun, Royal Purple!
I can't wait to see what it looks like dry and fluffed back up! If I am happy with it when it is dry it will go in my Etsy shop.
I also learned why they put rubber gloves in my kit that I ..umm...did not use...yikes!
Don't forget to enter my soap giveaway I will be having the drawing this week!
30 comments:
OMG!
I lOvE it!!
You are so smart. I love that you are dying wool. Do I remember correctly and you weave? Going to the woods to gather plants for your dying. This takes you back to woodlands where ancestors once gather plants.
Wishing you the best success with your new etsy shop. I am way proud of you!!!!!
Happy Weekend.
your hand is hilarious!!!
ooooh pretty yarn! Though now you look like Violet Beauregard after the gum incident. Hopefully you won't have to go through the squeezer :D
That dye is the most beautiful color!
Nice looks fun lol
+follow
It is a glorious color...the wool too. ;)
Pretty color yarn, but not so pretty on your hand...
Great pot, BTW!
What lovely plum colored skin! The yarn is awfully pretty too!
That yarn is beautiful! Can't help but laugh at your hand though. :)
Ha! I wonder if you'll dye the goats to match?
Ooo! That's beautiful wool! My lady said to thank you for letting her know that she needs to use the gloves if she ever tries this! Tee hee heeeee.
what a gorgeous purple!
I'm very impressed!
:)
Way to go looks like fun. Hope your purple hand goes away soon lol.
Your purple hand remind me of Violet Beauregarde in Charlie and The Chocolate Factory. ;)
YAY...and of course I laughed and smiled and thought what Nancy did!
Jennifer
Hahaha!!! I would have forgotten the gloves, too. :)
You did a great job. Congratulations! :-)
Oh my that certainly is a beautiful color!
I wonder if a person could use those same things from nature to dye cotton fabrics? I bet one could!
I LOVE the color. That purple/eggplant is my very favorite. :)
But it doesn't look so hot on your hands. *giggle* :P
Beautiful! Love the purply hands, too. People do that to their hair, why not their hands? =D
So pretty! Oh, the yarn looks good too! hehehehe
"I saw what you did!!!!!!!!!! I saw what you did!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
x
There's an award for you over at my place. :)
Now that is very cool! Even those purple hands. I bet you had everyone wondering at your work..."Now what did she do?". Your yarn looks nice and even on the colors...I bet that is actually pretty difficult to do and I know if it were me...I would have the counter, the walls, the floor...my clothes and even the cat who wandered by a raging color of purple. I always get ahead of myself!
Oh, I'm so impressed!!! HOW fun!!! :-D
Robbyn/thebackforty
This is so cool! Love the colour too. Gives me an idea......I'll have to find some raw yarn. Thanks.
A new skill learned! Love the purple hand....looks like mine after I pick elderberries with no gloves :-)
Cool! That's awesome that you made a goal and accomplished it!
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