Monday, February 27, 2012

Yellow Yarn

Busted out the dye book again.
I've been saving onionskins for so long I figured it was time to test them out.
I didn't bother sorting between red and yellow onions.
After a half an hour or so, the onionskins came out and the yarn went in.
I had quite a bit of yarn and some hanks got a more concentrated dye bath.
Still, I now have quite a bit of yellow yarn. And I have completely forgot what exactly I was planning on turning it into...
Yep.
No idea.
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4 comments:

  1. UnknownFebruary 28, 2012 at 9:18 AM

    onion skins are one natural dye that profits by a pre-bath of the wool in an alum mordant--it really pumps up the golden color--as does tin (stannis floride salts)--which is a bit more toxic.

    see how much more golden a color
    http://golden-apples.blogspot.com/2010/02/when-you-get-lemons.html

    but to be honest, I am quite happy with a bright sunny yellow (as one gets from a bottle of food coloring!) more often than not, i dye with simple food dyes. (and vinegar, but no mordants)

    Drug stores used to carry alum (its the main ingredient in a stytic pencil) Sometimes you can find it in craft stores (Michaels)--but not always.

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    1. grandmastatusFebruary 28, 2012 at 5:25 PM

      I prepared these skeins with alum, but it was ages ago. (Back when I knew what I was going to do with all this yarn.) The first 2 skeins I put in came out very rich and golden, but the next batch came out lighter.
      Aside from in an actual class, this is the first time I've dyed with natural materials at home. I think I might do another bath and give the lighter skins another dip. I like the darker color that the first dip gave.
      And thanks for sharing your onionskin yarn ^_^ It looks great!

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  2. EvelynFebruary 28, 2012 at 1:42 PM

    Awesome post! I can't help but wonder if an onion-y smell remains on the yarn?

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    Replies
    1. grandmastatusFebruary 28, 2012 at 5:16 PM

      I was thinking about that the whole time, actually. And now that it's dry I've sniffed and asked others to sniff. My brother says it smells like "a sheep. But a clean sheep."
      So nope. Just smells like wool. (Thank goodness.) The onion skins themselves didn't smell as much as I had expected when cooking, either.

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