Gina Rockenwagner

Posted on: Dyeing techniques How to dye yarn Snowdrift SuperwashJuly 16, 2021

Dye a Rainbow on SNOWDRIFT Minis

SNOWDRIFT mini skeins are finally here! We took our best-selling SNOWDRIFT superwash merino and nylon blend fingering weight yarn and skeined it up into bite sized mini skeins. These perfectly sized 20 gram skeins of yarn are just begging to become advent calendars, mini fades, cute intarsia or fair isle palettes, and whatever mini goodness your big imagination can concoct! 

To show off our new minis, we’re bringing you a rainbow fantastic tutorial! Follow along to dye a beautiful and bright rainbow of 6 colors I plan to use in a colorwork yoke sweater. Our super easy tutorial shows you how. 

What will you create with our new mini skeins? Let us know in the comments!

MATERIALS

• 3 mini skeins of Knomad SNOWDRIFT yarn – 75% merino wool, 25% nylon. We designed this project for mini skeins. 
• Dharma Trading co dye for silk and wool. I used the colors PURPLE POP, ELECTRIC VIOLET, FLOURESCENT FUCHSIA, FLOURESCENT SAFETY ORANGE, FLOURESCENT LEMON, and BRIGHT AQUA.
• 6 cups to mix the dye in
• Citric acid powder
• Your regular set up for heat setting yarn or a microwave and microwave safe dish you only use for dyeing. 
• Plastic wrap
• A small spoon
• Optional: 6 zip ties

SOAK THE YARN

Loop a zip tie around each skein of yarn, if you are using them. I decided to use small plastic zip ties instead of the reusable silicone zip ties I use for regular sized skeins.

Soak the yarn in lukewarm water with a dash of citric acid for about 1 hour. While your yarn soaks…

MIX AND MEASURE THE DYE

Make sure to always protect yourself with gloves and a respirator whenever you work with dye in its powder form. A dust mask or surgical mask is not enough protection to safely work with dye powder!

Since these skeins are so small at only 20 grams each, it is hard to measure the dye with a conventional gram scale typically used for dyeing. Because of this, I decided to just eyeball my dye measurements. You can see in the image below about how much dye I used. The spoon I’m using in the picture is a ¼ teaspoon.  Once your dye is in each cup, top each cup with about ¼ – ½ cup hot water. 

Mix each cup well. Allow the dye mix to cool completely.

DYE THE YARN

On a clean work surface, lay out a sheet of plastic wrap about 8 inches longer than the yarn skein. 

Remove one skein from the soaking liquid, gently squeezing the excess liquid out of the yarn. You want the skein to be damp, but not sopping wet. 

Place the skein in one cup of dye mix, pressing it down so the skein is fully submerged in the dye. Use the back of a spoon to work the dye into the yarn for even color. Place the mini skein on the plastic wrap. 

Fold up the long edge of the plastic wrap closest to you, then fold the top long edge down, overlapping the first fold you made. 

Use your gloved hands to press any air out of the yarn. Press to heal the short edge of the plastic wrap, then roll up the whole bundle like a jelly roll. Set aside.

Repeat these steps with the remaining skeins and colors of dye.

Heat set the yarn as you normally would. I microwaved 2 skeins at a time on high for 3 minutes.

RINSE AND DRY

Rinse and dry the yarn as you normally would.