Adventures in Dyeing

Adventures in Dyeing
After I got home from cheese-making, it was time for more fun with giant pots. It was finally time to dye my February Lady Sweater. I always meant to dye it, but I was just too lazy. The cream did nothing for me though, and I never wore it. So I picked up some Jacquard Acid Dye in Burnt Orange and got to work (with some much-needed email guidance from knitabulous). The cardigan – which had been previously washed and soaked overnight – went into the pot along with some citric acid, dye, and lots of water. It was very vivid and murky. I kept it on a gentle simmer for about 40 minutes, checking on it often. I was pleased to see the water clearing just like Ailsa said it would! I turned off the heat and left it overnight. In the morning I dumped out the water and gave the cardigan a rinse and another soak (with hair conditioner). That night I finally squeezed out the water and had a look at the final product. To be honest, I was a little surprised at how blotchy it was. The dye didn’t take up evenly, and the effect is almost like tye-dye. (I’ve since read on Twitter that this is a common problem, and that dying whole garments rarely works perfectly.) Anyway, I let it dry thinking I’d make a final assessment later. Today, I actually wore it to work. And you know what? I think I like it!

Dyed cardy

I’ve had some compliments on it at work, and everybody seems to think the dye effect is intentional. It’s definitely more wearable than the cream version was! I may still have a go at touching it up; I’ve got more dye that I can “paint on” the lighter areas. But for now, I’m pretty happy with my first go at dyeing. Thanks to Ailsa and everybody who gave advice on Twitter!

2 Comments

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  1. I would agree much better than the cream and I have to say that I too like the colour and the variation from looking at the pics, nevertheless the colour is working on you Kris 😀

    Bring it along to M&S ..me want a real looky ;D

  2. Which is quite funny, because I have an Orange FLS which I never wear. But that’s because it was knitted with dead lady wool and is horrible, horrible, horrible. Which is why Ravelry should have a little vomiting smilie.

    Your sweater looks quite good.

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