With the Holidays just days away, it’s time to get preoccupied with some colorful dyeing. I’m not a seasonal spinning. Meaning, I don’t spin bright colors in the summer and dreary colors in the winter. My first go-to is color. That’s my spark right there. Feel is next. How does it feel between my fingers? Is it slick, easily sliding between the fingers. Or a slight tug of the fibers, but still soft to the touch. The Mama Bear of Fiber Feel. Or, course with a sort of crispy, springy feel.
My absolute fiber of choice is merino wool. Superfine with a long staple length. It’s heavenly. Plain natural or dyed to perfection, I’ll spin it. That’s why I only dye merino wool. I know this fiber well enough to say that I’ve become a specialist on it. Knowing the ratios of dye to water and acid to almost predict how it will respond/react with the fiber.
My dyeing is more of a painting technique, preferring to use squeeze bottles for precision versus folks using measuring cups and dye baths. It’s fun to work on only one at a time, versus mass batches. Does that make it artisanal? Asking for a friend.)
Another difference is that my wool top is batched in 150 grams (5.25 ounces) versus the “standard” 100 grams (4 ounces). Years ago, this all came into being when knitting really took off and everyone was spinning for socks. And, a pair of socks took a 4-ounce skein of yarn. So, we indie dyers were dying for that. Personally, I always have spinning waste. And, I’m not knitting socks. I’m more of a scarf weaver or knitter, and a sock’s worth wasn’t always enough. So, I chose to up my volume for personal reasons, and passing that fiber love along.
My dyeing setup, ready for a snowy morning of dyeing fun.
In my dyeing binder, I keep samples of successful dyes with the color recipes:
My dye tray with steaming bottles of vibrant color:
Wrapped and ready for steaming:
More rainbow fiber sausages:
It’s hard to see, but that’s STEAMING hot!
The final fiber, ready for inspection:
And, finally getting inspected. I literally uncoil it and roll it flat and check for neps or oddities. This requires a beer.
The final coil:
Keep an eye open for the spinning post, where I get to spin this up.