I used Bare Fingering yarn in the merino/nylon base, my Hornshaw swift and a knitting loom.
I saw a few people at the last retreat use these tools and I wanted to try it for myself.
I put the hank on the the swift. KnitPicks is only 60 inches on there wraps.
I counted the pegs on the loom. Largest size had 40. So, I used 13 for each section and left one for the start and stop of the winding. I did a three color repeat with the center color going in both directions. I wrapped each section 10 times before moving on to the next section.
When the loom got full, I left the rest for the Heel and Toe color. I had 365 yds on the loom and 100 yds for contrast.
I then soaked the yarn in salt water with a bit of vinegar- not too exact, just a glug.
I had to use a pot to keep the yarn underwater, as the plastic loom wanted to float.
While that was soaking, I set up my dyes. I used some plastic freezer canning jars that I picked up on sale last year. I filled them half way with white vinegar and added about 1/2 tsp of salt. Stir to dissolve.
I then added boiling water to the cups and the dye. This time I went with Wilton's. I do not measure my dye, I just play and hope it comes out well.
As you can see, the darker color went into my bright color, so I just decided to second dip that color with the darker one when I was pulling them out.
I let the yarn soak for about 20 minutes. I started my hot water in the sink and got it to where I could not feel a difference in what was in the cups compared to the running water.
I rinsed the yarn , squeezed it until little water came out and hung up to dry.
It dried over night.
I then, very carefully, put the yarn back on the loom- yeah- that didn't work for skeining it back up. I took it off the loom and set it on the table and very carefully wound it into a ball.
Then I used a ball winder to transform it into a cake.
I am using the Crenellated Toe-Up Socks pattern by Lucy Neatby, on size 2 needles and 64 stitches. This sock has a unique square toe cast on. I hope I like the fit.
I am calling the yarn- Vineyard.
8 comments:
Woo hoo! That looks amazing ! I like the colors you used too :-)
WOWza, Coggie, how long is each color section? Love how you have white spots.
thanks for sharing! I had seen some people using the looms in Tina's recap of knittopia and was intrigued by the method. definitely a labor intensive process but the results look amazing!!
Each color section is about 7 rows of knitting. I would say about 5 yards of yarn. I am not exact. The white is caused by the tie offs I use. I like the heathered look so I use cotton tie offs and tie tight. IF you don't like the look, use wool and tie loosely.
Thanks for sharing your method. My fiber group is having a dye day/campout this weekend and we plan to do self striping yarn as one of our projects. :)
I love the colors you picked. It does look like a vineyard.
How fun!! Looks awesome!
I always wondered how self striping was done. It looks lovely, good colours and I like the way you have achieved a speckled effect
That is a fascinating process. I wonder if it is possible to keep those colors from crossing the into each other.
Turned out beautiful though!
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