dye Archives - On a Quest for Fibre

Let’s Go For A Spin & Dye

Natural Dyed Combed Top

Today the adventure begins to spin up all the fibre I dyed yesterday. So after I dyed up Day 11 of my advent five bits club, I grabbed a decaf coffee and found a cozy corner to sit and spin for a while. My wheel is a Schacht Ladybug wheel that I bought in 2017. She is very reliable and always gets the task at hand done.

Spinning Cheviot

I managed to get one of the “mini tops” spun. This colour is gorgeous in natural light; not as good as the camera. Don’t worry; after I turn all the fibre into yarn, I will take pictures outside where the lighting is best.

I watched a great class by the School of Sweet Georgia on natural dyeing with Fresh Indigo Leaves by Caitlin Ffrench. It made me run out to my garden and try to salvage what I had left as I realized I was underwatering them. It was a great refresher and showed how I could improve on the steps she demonstrated. I highly recommend all of Caitlin’s classes on natural dyeing and the school itself; so many topics to learn in the fibre arts.

Anyway, back to my garden, I went outside and picked off all the dried or damaged leaves, and I got rid of some plants that were crowding them. I also realized something is eating the smaller leaves (the plants are in containers, so I don’t think it is slugs) so if you have any idea, please comment below. Here is a before video, and I’ll post another video in the next post.

Before Photo of Indigo 😳

I also had some leftover dye yesterday, so I plunked in a skein of superwash Corriedale (a fantastic hard-wearing sock yarn). I saw the results last night, and the colour was too light, so I added some madder extract. Let’s see how that turns out tomorrow.

Natural dye on Corriedale

If you know anyone that is wanting to learn to use natural dyes, please share this blog post and remember to subscribe to this website, so you get a notification as to when I post my journey of dyeing and spinning again. Cheers,

Keli

Journey To Perfection

I have tried for so long to dye combed top with plants.

I get frustrated dyeing with a combed top. My issues have been felting and the dye not penetrating the colour deep enough. I end up returning to dyeing yarn with natural dyes…My heart is so with an undyed combed top as I am a spinner. I love to spin with a supported spindle.

These past few days, I have been dyeing Cheviot with some fresh hibiscus flowers, marigolds, tango cosmos, and some sunflower seeds, all from my garden.

Here is a video of my fibre soaking in the dye from the flowers. https://youtube.com/shorts/k0lrNySFgeA?feature=share I used alum and cream of tartar for my mordants. I kept most of the smaller flowers and seeds separate from the fibre.

I have to say I’m pleased with the results. I created a Fade fit Fall. From orange to pink to spots of violet, I can’t wait for this to dry so I can start spinning on my wheel.

Today I have to dye Day 11 of my Advent Fibre Bits Club. Hello Autumn Fibre Bits club is complete, and I’ll start packaging and sending them out next week. 😊

Well time to get my morning coffee as it’s 6:12am and everyone is still fast asleep in my house; best tome for me to write.

Cheers

Keli

Here’s a Pumpkin Patch Colour Way that you’ll love.

Hand dyed by me with flowers and plants from my garden.

I used marigolds, St. John’s Wart, Madder, and Japanese indigo. All but the madder root was from my garden as I have some growing, but it takes two to three years to mature.

You can find these mini skein sets at my Etsy shop. I only have three available (one set has four mini skeins). The rest have three.

Cheers,

Keli

2022 Advent Fibre Bits Club

They are back for the third year in a row. Go to this link and pre-order one now; I have a limited amount available.

Perhaps you don’t know what advent fibre bits are all about. From December 1st to Dec 12th, you will open one package every day. They are packages that contain 20g of fibre and a little treat as well. You get to pick your yarn; this year, I have Polwarth, BFL, and Cheviot available. The colours I pick this year will centre around a theme, so you could make a large skein or spin each bundle individually into mini-skeins.

Go to my Instagram account (bottom of the website) and look up hashtag #adventfibrebits for previous year’s photos.

Share this blog post with your other spinning friends. Just click on the share button right below.

Oh, wait. I want to mention that you don’t have to wait to receive my hand-dyed fibre bits till December. You can be a part of my monthly subscription and order a 112g braid of fibre today. You can also join in on the fun here.

Happy spinning!

-Keli