Sunday, January 28, 2018

Year of Projects 7: Week 31



Last week I rolled up my sleeves and opened my Hand Dye Sock Kit from Louet North America. The kit contained three 50gram skeins of natural Louet Gems fingering weight yarn, small jars of dye crystals labelled Silver Birch, Cornflower and Blueberry, a squeeze bottle and instructions.

First I soaked the undyed yarn for 40 minutes in warm water. Next I mixed the Silver Birch dye with hot water, then squeezed it onto the yarn skeins. I realized after the first colour that I should have untwisted the skeins from the very beginning, so I did that right away. I repeated the dye step with the Cornflower dye and the Blueberry dye, turning the skeins to make sure that all the yarn was dyed.  Next I wrapped the skeins in plastic wrap, bagged them in Freezer bags (unsealed) and microwaved them.  Being careful not to burn or scald myself, I unwrapped the skeins and hung them to dry overnight. And finally I rinsed the skeins in a SOAK bath to remove excess dye and hung them once more to dry.


I think they turned out beautifully! The three dye colours resulted in a nice tonal yarn with an overall denim-y effect. I'm so pleased with the yarn and highly recommend the kit. It was easy and fun!

I decided to knit Ringwood Socks from the yarn. It's a very simple traditional pattern that creates a nice texture which works well with variegated yarn.

Ringwood Pattern:
R1: K1P1
R2: Knit
R3: Knit

I knit them toe-up with an FLK heel, although with 3 skeins of yarn there was no chance of running short. As well, because I made the legs longish, I increased 8 stitches at the top of the leg before the cuff to accommodate the widening of my legs at the calf. That worked out great, I think.

The socks are great; and I'm not the only one who thinks so. Gavin keeps trying to steal them. That's a backhanded compliment, I'd say!

Now what to knit next? My Mystery Paper Bag for February is coming up in just a few days, so nothing too complicated. For my Gschnitztal Socks I've decided that I'd better work with metal 2.5mm needles - which I don't have so I've ordered them. I was thinking Mojo Socks, but there was a delay when I purchased the pattern from Ravelry. So now I'm knitting Plaid Socks... but more on that next week.

10 comments:

Wanderingcatstudio said...

Lovely!

Dyeing is so much fun - and while it can be messy, it's pretty easy!

Leftycrafter said...

The color of the socks turned out great. I too, think of denim when I look at them. You also choose the perfect pattern for them. It really highlights the tonal colors. I am so impressed that you dye and knit a pair of socks in a week. Do you sleep or eat? LOL

Sam I Am...... said...

Wow!!! You dyed the yarn and knitted the socks all in one week? You are Super Knitter! I think you should get a special award for that! Has anyone ever accomplished that in the world of knitting? How about the Guinness Book of World Records? They turned out beautiful and thank you for the pattern.

Ella said...

Just look at all those beautiful socks you've completed already! I love them all.

Lucy Bowen said...

Oh my gosh, the colour you ended up with is fabulous. It suits those socks perfectly. I have signed up for the Helen Stewart sock club, and am really looking forward to the first one this week.

Breathing Life said...

wow. from undyed to dyed to knit up and on your feet in a week? I am very impressed and they look fantastic.

Caffeine Girl said...

Your dye job is perfect. I love that variegated denim look.
You are just so good at all things sock!

Becki said...

Not to sound like simply an echo of everyone above, but... You dyed yarn AND knit those socks in the same week?!? You amaze. :^) The yarn turned out beautiful and the socks do look perfect. I am well and truly in awe.

Gracey is not my name.... said...

Those are fantastic! The color came out great!

Stefanie said...

Boom-boom-boom! You were on task from the dyeing start to FO finish. That is terrific!