I finally got some decent pictures of my Swish Bulky sweater! This is not only to show that I did make said sweater, but to immortalize its temporary whiteness.
You see, I'm really, really good at turning white clothes pink. I don't really have problems with any other color of clothing, but white things just don't stay white. So, in order to prevent my inevitable disappointment, I'm planning on dyeing my sweater. But I can't figure out what color to dye it - or what dye to use.
I love bright colors. Love love love. In fact, one could say my favorite color is tie-dye. But in actuality, my favorite color is brown. And that's convenient, because I actually want this sweater to be a fairly tame color. My first thought was to kettle-dye this yarn brown before knitting with it. Brown is certainly still an option, but since the sweater is already done, kettle dyeing will make it look... weird. It needs to be a pretty solid dye job.
Alison recently brough in some yarn she'd spun with roving dyed with our Greener Shades Acid Dye kit. It's insanely impressive how bright and true the colors were, and how much you could dye with the set! (I think it was something like 13 pounds of fiber with one kit - holy cow!) But could I make a more subtle shade with those dyes? I'm sure I could, but I'd have to experiment a little.
The other option is to get the Earthhues Botanical Dye Kit. These I have played with, and though the process took an awfully long time, I was pretty thrilled with the outcome. I was just playing with some Bare yarn I had, and using Lac and Osage Orange, I got some beautifully muted, sophisticated shades - just the sort of thing I'm looking for! But, each dye packet in that set dyes approximately one pound of material - and my sweater is considerably heavier than that. If I combined all of any two of the colors, though, I could dye it - and I don't think it's possible to get a bad color out of these dyes!
But, i guess that the dye is essentially secondary to what color I want. So far, my favorite options are grey-violet, dusty brown, mauve, burnt orange or mustard. Not my usual color fare, but hey, change is good sometimes!
In other news, I'm making a little progress on Hubby's sweater...
But more on that later! What color do you think my sweater should be?
Mar 2, 2012 at 8:55 AM Burnt Orange!!! I am a huge purple fan and grey fan but Spring is around the corner and Orange would get you in the mood for Summer =)
Feb 27, 2012 at 11:08 AM Kerin~ Sounds like You Solved Your Own Problem :))) If Solid You MuST (Don't Know Why bc This Sweater'd Be FaB TieDyed) I'd say Get Out the Rubber Bands & TieDye It Mauve/ Grey Violet/ Grey..Then You get BesT of ALL Worlds!!! TieDyed and Muted :)))) & In Very Femmy Colors that Would Match Many Many Slacks,Skirts,Leggings etc :))) Quite Confident YOU Could DO a GR8 Tie Dye JoB!!!
Feb 27, 2012 at 9:20 AM I am a big fan of using Rit dyes in my washing machine.
Feb 25, 2012 at 5:11 PM I say gray-violet- always a winner with me! runner-up would be mauve- but whatever you choose, I'm anxious to see the finished sweater. have fun, Anne
Feb 25, 2012 at 3:37 PM I say gray-violet! But that's because I like purple. :)
Feb 25, 2012 at 11:01 AM Purple!
Feb 25, 2012 at 8:21 AM I am in the middle of an almost white shawl, in the Peruvian Wool but I would really like it to be black. Is dying black difficult?
Feb 25, 2012 at 5:00 AM I have never dyed a sweater before, do you dye swatches first to make certain you are going to get the color your want? I vote for grey violet.
Feb 25, 2012 at 4:49 AM That's a lovely sweater. I never thought of dyeing it after knitting. Can't wait to see it again!
Feb 24, 2012 at 11:19 PM It is far too difficult to choose a colour for another person, especially when you have no idea what that person's complexion is. (I'm a natural redhead and my hair clashes with a lot of things, so I try to be extra-careful with colours for everyone.) However, if you want a subdued brown, you might be able to dye it with tea. It's natural, food-safe, and the dye pot will smell good!