Skip to main content

Who needs plain yarn when there is Kool Aid and sun?

I got some plain yarn, it is beige Lion Brand 100% wool, kind of boring. 24 oz of it.

I want to knit this, from Knitty. Imagine by Karen Alfke who blogs here Abakini, better living thorough knitting.

006 Notice that there is green and blue Kool Aid, in the background. Because, yes, I am officially obsessed with Kool Aid dyeing.

I wound it off015 into 4 oz hanks.

And then cooked up some lemon-lime Kool aid, I used 5 pkgs. per 4 oz of yarn.007 I decided to solar dye the yarn, since it is 93 here and sunny, and I found some sun tea jars on sale at Wal-Mart.

011 I let it “cook” until the water was clear, then let cool until room temp and  rinse and drained it well. This took about 6-8 hours in full sun. Let cool and then rinse in cool water. Hang to dry.013008 (2)

 

Very green, but I wanted a little variation in color. I used blue Kool Aid, and used 2 pkgs. per 4 oz hank of yarn. I had a brain storm of applying it with a salt shaker.014.

Make sure you yarn is just barely damp, not setting in water or this will “run” the colors (which also looks nice, but I wanted subtle).007 I don’t know if you can see the little drops of color, you may be able to see it better on my flickr page, if you need to Sprinkles of blue Kool Aid

 

Place the yarn in a bowl and heat in the microwave for 2 min.

When it comes out, sprinkle with your salt shaker as much as you like, wait until the powder “blooms”, and then toss carefully (i used two forks (the yarn will be hot), like it was spaghetti) and sprinkle again, do this until you have as much color as you like.

017 Then place in a glass bowl or jar (carefully) and cover.I used a bowl and some cling wrap.

Sit in the sun again, until steamy, this part sets the color in. I waited about 4 hours in full sun and it was 90 degrees. When you look in no Kool Aid powder should be visible, it will have “steamed” in your container.019

Now, let cool, it will be quite warm or hot, until room temp. and then rinse in cool water.014 Me placing the yarn to on my deck.

015 Here it all is drying and I think the hanks even match each other quite well, I’m amazed and excited.

016 002

All ready to make a gauge swatch now!

A green peace pullover, imagine that, I think it will  be good to hike and camp in during colder months.

May you knitting needles fly as fast as dragonflies

Comments

  1. I liked that pullover, too, when I saw it. When are you going to start knitting this project?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Such an enabler you are! I was reading thinking this sounds odd, but your yarn turned out beautifully! The only this stopping me from trying this myself, is the crappy weather we've been having.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Looks lovely! I need to get busy and finish spinning mine so I can dye it before winter sets it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have to try this (minus the salt because I'm a chicken)! I have some boring natural yarn that I haven't touched because it's not a pretty color.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've never tried kool aid dying. It looks lovely the way you did it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I have a question - I have read that you need to set your color with vinegar to keep it from coming out in the wash. Have you had trouble with your color washing out of your knitted articles?

    I love Lion Brand fisherman's wool. Great stuff!

    ReplyDelete
  7. The yarn is wonderful with the blue added in combo with the green. I've considered doing something like this myself with my more boring colored yarns. Thanks for showing me how you've done it

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh my, I'm totally in love with the color!!!
    Do people do really drink those stuff?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous8/26/2009

    I think our brains ar linked.I did the same thing this last winter when i was in the mood for some warm colors.I went to Jo-ann's because i didnt want to buy "Blank" yarn hanks for 7.99 a piece especially when they are only 2 oz. so i saw the fishermans wool and thought "Score!".I mean you get a lot of yarn for the price and your not paying thru the nose to dye your own yarn.I love dying my homespun but this works great if you need commercial yarn.You do a great job w/ kool-aid dying.love the green blue mix.It reminded me of earth with the blue and greens.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thank you for leaving a comment I love reading them and really appreciate you taking the time to let me know you were here!

Popular posts from this blog

Review of a Kick Spindles Or Mother Marion to spin

When I made the decision to buy a Kick spindle I could find very little info on it, anywhere. Below is what I gathered, bought and my experience with mine. I could only find two being marketed, since I purchased mine I have found a third. Below is my views on the Kick spindle I purchased (Little Meggie from Heavenly Handspinning), and some info on all of the other Kick Spindles that I could locate. Links and costs are included. Review: Things I like about my Kick Spindle. 1. Long spin time, I like the addition of the ball bearing. 2. Leaves both hands free to draft 3. It's my "wheel" 4. I like using my foot, I am moving around and don't get stiff from one position. It's a very "active" type, rhythmic motion. 5. You can actually stand and use it also. 6. Great price point. 7. I have never spun on a wheel and when I sat down at one the first time, I could actually spin (some) I think this action of foot/hand coordination helped. 8.

Aran Shrug, Bridesmaid Wrap, Baby Bunting Pattern free

Here is the start of my "Bridesmaid wrap" from " Wedding Knits " by Suss Cousins. I am making it out of heavier yarn, From Handpainted yarns I love the yarn it is so soft and the colors are beautiful. The wrap is made in mohair in the book. I plan on making it a shorter wrap, due to the heavier yarn. I hope it turns out OK . If you check out the book link, there is photo of it. If you want a free Bridesmaid wrap pattern this is a lovely one from Knitty! I made this baby bunting, on the spur of the moment, just playing around. I used one skein of red heart yarn, and a small amount of the fun fur yarn in a coordinating color. Cast on 80 stitches at 4 sts /inch. Knit in the round, until 24 inches long. If you would rather knit flat, knit even rows, purl odd rows. Add Fun fur yarn, or other novelty yarn for the last 10 rows. Bind off, using a very loose bind off. I like to use the Elizabeth Zimmerman method of the Sewn Bind off

Crochet A Plant Hanger (easy)

It is getting frosty here and the leaves are turning beautiful colors. I had a mass die off of plants, (well, due to my neglect), I did revive a few by repotting.  I brought in some plants from the deck, which Mother Nature took better care of. I decided to hang the larger plants, to save space and didn’t have any plant hangers. I prefer to put my plants in plain clay pots, and had already made my StuffMart run for the week. I got online and looked around for an easy DIY plant hanger. Of course I couldn’t find what I was looking for, although I found some really cute ones that I will link at the end. I was going to macramé one, but when I found some crochet patterns, I thought that would be faster and just as pretty. I looked around and did find a unopened ball of jute, opened it up and got my crochet needle out and started playing around. I’ll place links in the directions in case you don’t know how to crochet, this is super easy. Crochet Plant Hanger (easy) You can customize t