Kiss My Knits!

This is two skeins of Cascade 220 superwash dyed in my dyepot Big Tina. Doing these right after the rose-colored skein of non-superwash Cascade 220 taught me more about the difference in uptake in superwash and conventional wool and how the addition of acid early in the process affects strike time.

I was going for green with striations that were variations in shade but not entirely different colors. When it first came out I thought the saturation wasn’t strong enough, so I gave it another bath in a light sky blue. It turned out a little bluer than I was anticipating (although the picture makes it look bluer than life), but I’m very pleased with the result. I’m all about the blue.

I have a pattern in mind for this, assuming I can clear the decks of Jayne work.

I learn a little more each time I dye. Perhaps it’s time to start buying in bulk and increase the frequency of my dyeing. If I do that, I’ll probably have to start selling, though – I can’t use all the yarn I’ve got, I can’t clutter up the house with more. Big Tina will easily hold sweater quantities or permit me to do larger dye lots at once.

I’m not where I want to be yet, but learning is a process that never ends. I’m feeling like what I can make beautiful yarn while I improve. Maybe it is time to release a few skeins into the wild.

For now though, it’s back to knitting Jayne hats.