Dye experiment 1 (Kool aid (don't drink it, dye it).

Ok as a Brit, I have never had the experience of drinking kool aid, and I have never wanted too. The label does have the awkward link to the Jonestown/Jim Jones thing which we have heard of this side of the pond, and is rarely/never seen in shops so we sort of associate it with chemical death drink. However, I learned it was a perfect way to dye yarn - especially wool. So today I will be playing with Kool aid - just not drinking it. :)

Add in the way every time I mention dyeing around my partner he now says ''Nooooo, I love you' in a joking yet touching way the whole Kool aid experiment seems the logical first step.

Welcome to my dye kit,

(brought with my wee sister-in-laws (slaw) Christmas monies) from Rosiesmoments on Etsy.

First thing first was researching the types of colours I would get with my mixes. I ended up asking on Ravelry for the green apple as that is a new flavour.  Otherwise, the main colours can be found on this awesome resource if you are interested in food colouring dyeing.

So now I know what sorts of things are possible. My notepad for this states :

Black cherry (BC) - deeper blood red
Cherry (C) - deep red
Orange (O) - vibrant tangerine
Grape (G) - dark purple (as close to black as kool aid gets)
Lemonade (L) - light yellow
Green Apple (GA) - vibrant green

So what do I do with over 400 meters of wool. I start a plan of action.

1. Re-skein it to get 6 smaller skeins of solid colour and 1 of mixed colour.
2. Dye the wool.
3. Celebrate.

Of course it's never that easy.
Lesson 1 : NEVER re-skein without making a ball as the intermediate step! It creates a 400 meter knot for you to patiently recover which in turn looses an entire day of crafting. :( 

Lesson 2: Not all mini-skeins are equal. I managed to get nice equally long skeins for the 6 solids, then did another one of the same length. I started thinking I'd maybe attempt a pair of socks with the yarn after so the mixed section would be awesome for the toes and heel. So lets make a second mixed section.  Oh and what happens if I Braid a set of the skeins and then spot dye using small amounts of the dry powder.

So I now have 7 skeins each of 50 yards of wool (six for solid shades and 1 for a rainbow gradient), and a spare of 90 yards which I will braid for the spotty part. I'm still thinking of socks, but maybe it will be spotty toes and heels with a gradient for the cuff. Lets finish the dyeing first.

Dyeing with Kool aid :

1: Wash yarn with small amount of wool safe soap and leave to soak in clean water while you prep everything else. Q? Do I plait the braid 1st? A. Yes, to prevent yarn felting.

2: Mix up solutions for the solid/gradients reserving some powder for the braid or powder braid first.

3. Put wet and plaited braid flat in shallow microwaveable dish with enough water to just cover. Scatter the dry powder over the yarn. Then cover with clingfilm and nuke for 2 minutes, check/stand and repeat until all dye taken up by yarn. If you don't want to nuke you can steam. I chose to nuke mine as I wanted to try that method.

4. Paint a small amount of the solutions onto rainbow gradient skein and wrap in cling film.  Nuke/steam in dish with water as you did for the spotty braid.

4. Add remaining solutions 1 colour to each of three jars for slowcooker add skeins and use enough water to cover skeins. Add hot water around the jars and cook in slow cooker until water is clear/colourless. Repeat with remaining colours.

Hang wool to dry and CELEBRATE.  Take lots of Photo's. Oh and one day knit it into something cool.