How to dye a two color dip dye yarn on Knomad Ivory
FIRST, YOU MUST KNOW THIS When I took my first oil painting class as a...
Two yarns one color Ivory and Bristle
Dyeing With Ivory and Bristle: How to Dye a Beach Inspired Colorway
Summer has officially begun and I find myself dreaming of a tropical beach get away. I’d love to swim in beautiful turquoise blue waters, sunbathe atop warm sand and collect blush colored seashells. Until I can get there myself, I got inspired to dye a colorway that transports my mind on a beach vacation! Using sand under a microscope as my inspiration, I took to the dye pot to create a sandy warm beige and light pink with speckles of Caribbean blue and, bright pink and yellow.
To get a feel for how this colorway looks on different types of yarn, I’m dyeing with both Bristle and Ivory.
Bristle is a two ply yarn made from non superwash organic wool and a touch of hemp fibre. The hemp fibre doesn’t take the dye as easily as the wool. This means the finished yarn has a unique heathered appearance. The hemp content also makes this yarn a great choice for the warmer weather we’re experiencing now!
Ivory is a luxe blend of merino wool, baby alpaca, and silk. It takes dye beautifully and evenly. Ivory has a soft but cool hand thanks to its silk content.
MATERIALS
- 1 skein of Knomad BRISTLE yarn – 70% fine organic merino wool, 30% hemp
- 1 skein of Knomad IVORY yarn – 70% extra fine merino wool, 20% royal alpaca, 10% mulberry silk
- Dharma Trading co acid dye for silk and wool. I used the colors SOFT TAN, BALLERINA PINK, FLOURESCENT SAFETY ORANGE and CARIBBEAN BLUE
- Gram scale
- 2 large cups to mix the dye in
- 2 small cups or containers preferably with lids so leftover dye powder can be stored for future use
- Citric acid powder
- Metal chafing pan or a dye pot
- A tablespoon
- Tongs
- Your regular set up for heat setting yarn
- Optional: 2 zip ties
SOAK THE YARN
Loop a zip tie around each skein of yarn, if you are using them.
Soak the yarn in lukewarm water for about 1 hour.
Meanwhile, prepare your dye.
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 or surgical mask is not enough protection to safely work with dye powder!
Into one large cup, measure ½ gram SOFT TAN dye powder. Add ½ teaspoon of citric acid powder and top with hot water. Stir to dissolve.
Repeat the above with ½ gram of BALLERINA PINK dye powder in the remaining large cup.
In one of the small cups, mix a small amount about the size of your pinky finger nail of FLOURESCENT SAFETY ORANGE dye powder with 1 teaspoon of citric acid powder.
In the remaining small cup, repeat the step above with the CARIBBEAN BLUE dye.
Put the lids on the small cups of dye until you’re ready to dye. The liquid dye can remain uncovered.
DYE THE YARN
Remove the skeins from the soaking liquid, gently squeezing the excess liquid out of the yarn. You want them to be damp, but not sopping wet. Place the two skeins side by side in the pan, using the tongs or the back of a spoon to press the yarn down into the pan.
Pour the cup of SOFT TAN liquid dye mix over one side of the skeins.
Pour the cup of BALLERINA PINK liquid dye mix over the opposite end of the skeins.
Cover the dye pan and heat for 10 minutes.
Uncover the pan and turn off the heat.
Working quickly, sprinkle the FLOURESCENT SAFETY ORANGE dye powder mix over the skeins. Use a gentle hand. You can always add more!
Then sprinkle the CARIBBEAN BLUE dye powder mix over the skeins, placing the dye powder where you want the speckles to be.
Cover the pan and heat for another 5-10 min until the speckles are set.
Allow the yarn to cool completely.
RINSE AND DRY
Rinse and dry the yarn as you normally would.
Enjoy your finished yarn! Make sure to tag us using #Knomadyarn so we can see all your fabulous projects.
Leave a Reply