More fun with Kool-Aid

I don't know why, but I really haven't been feeling like knitting lately. 

I will start knitting, and then put it down after ten minutes because my hands start to hurt, or I get bored, or I get frustrated. I don't know if it is just that the project I am working on is a little monotonous (I have been mostly working on my striped shawl), or just that I am a little knitted out, but I have been wanting to work on other crafts instead.

So the other day I decided on a whim to dye some yarn. I had a skein of undyed Malabrigo Merino Worsted lying around, so I mixed up one package of Lime Kool-Aid and one of Blue Raspberry, plus one tablespoon of vinegar, one tablespoon of blue food coloring, and a couple of drops of red food coloring in my crock pot and got to work.

I soaked the yarn in the sink with hot water while boiled some water in my tea kettle.

Then I mixed the hot water with the dye mixture, gently squeezed out some water from the yarn, and dropped it in the dye.

After half an hour I filled the sink with hot water and Eucalan wool wash. I gently pulled the yarn out of the dye pot and let it soak in the sink until the water cooled down. Then I rinsed the yarn and hung it on a hanger to dry. 

After drying for about 24 hours it looked like this:

I was trying to get a sort of greyish blue, and I think it worked out pretty well. I really like how the color turned out.

I have also been spinning a lot the last couple days. I decided to predraft all of BFL wool that I have been spinning, meaning that I went through all of the wool and separated and pulled it apart so that it is easier to spin. I then made tiny little balls with the roving. 

Doing this makes it a lot easier for me to spin because I can spin an entire little ball of roving and then either keep going to easily set down the spindle without worrying about losing the end of the single or having to draft more fiber. Plus, I like to pour out all of the little bundles and smoosh them because they are SO PRETTY!

In other news, I just got my tax refund back and, after putting a large amount in my savings account, I am going to use some of the money to BUY A SPINNING WHEEL!!!!! I can not even express my excitement.

After doing a lot of research, I have decided to buy a Lendrum Single Treadle spinning wheel. I will let you know more as this story develops.

I hope that you all have a wonderful and productive end of your week!

-Nicole