Ka Romney

Ka Romeney colors shown to left
Originally uploaded by OldTownTreadles

I guess everyone gets around to dying at some time. I decided to get some practice at it, and read up on dying with Kool Aid in a Ravelry forum dedicated to KA dying. This showed my first effort. The colors used are on the counter, the fiber is unspun Romney, which has been cleaned, carded, and attenuated, then soaked in a solution of vinegar and water. After allowing the solution to soak into the fiber, I choose my colors, exotic, aren't they? I lifted the layers and placed dry flakes of unsweetened kool aid in with the fibers, some with the red, some with the mango (I think it's mango). After this, I placed the microwave safe cake pan in the microwave, and gave it a few minutes on high, a bit of a rest, a few minutes on high, a bit of a rest, and did this till the water in the pan was clear and all the color had been absorbed by the fiber. The intensity of the dye tended to spread a bit, and blend a bit, and turned out to be wonderful stuff. Some was used in a hat, the rest will be spun up this weekend, with any luck. I've done a few batches now of this particular color combo, and have just finished the first batch of a second color combo.

It might not be as exotic as using wildcrafted herbs and mushrooms, but I love the ease of it and the durability of it. The wool is as soft after as it was before, in case you wondered.

And, of course, it's fun.