Handspinning and Dyeing Sock Yarn

SOCKS! Cannot get enough of knitting the things.

However, I thought I'd have a go at making my own sock yarn. The yarn is now complete and sock number one is currently under construction.

If you are interested in learning more about the dyeing process then read this post.

This is more of a visual guide to the different stages of making and dyeing your own yarn.

Here we go:

While making any yarn, durability is a main concern - particularly when it comes to sock yarn. Using synthetic fibres is a good way to add strength to your fibres. In this blend, I added 25% nylon to white Blue Faced Leicester tops. 

You can see the difference of the bright white nylon against the BFL. I wasn't sure how well acid dyes would work with synthetic fibres, so instead of blending these two fibres with a drum carder I blended them by hand for a more even mix. Evenly mixing the nylon into the main fibre should help prevent holey socks too.

Rolags all set up ready for spinning.

I may have left quite a length of time in between the actual spinning part and I forgot to document this part of the process silly me! 

You do need to have the wheel at a higher ratio when you're spinning finer yarn. Each group of fibres needs an increased amount of twists to hold it together, whereas a chunky yarn requires less rotation to keep its form. Creating a thin yarn can be rather time consuming, but if you prepare the fibre well (light fluffy rolags) before starting then you're less likely to encounter problems during spinning. 

After a good few (cumulative) hours of spinning:

-the yarn has been wound off the bobbin and onto a niddy noddy

-waste cotton has been tied around points of the skein to prevent the yarn from tangling during dyeing.

In the same way you would set the twist in a pre-dyed yarn, let it soak in warm water with some wool wash for about 15 minutes. This helps the fibre absorb the dye and also removes any residue left on the yarn.

While the skein is soaking, I tend to prepare my dye. I have some mixes already made and stored away, so sometimes it's just a case of tweaking them to get the colours right. A good way to check the colour is to paint it onto some white paper (if you're using white yarn) as the dye solutions can look a lot darker than they really are.

Once the yarn has been painted, it is wrapped up in cling film.

During my previous dyeing experiments, I have used a pot with a steamer attachment to set the dye. I managed to get my hands on a cheap microwave, which is apparently a good way to set the colour in a lot less time.

Before I have left the cling film package to steam for about 30 minutes. This time it was in the microwave for a total of 5 minutes. If you are using a microwave it is important to only use it for dyeing and not for cooking food as well due to the chemicals in the dye.

The package will retain heat for a while, so leave it to cool for about 15-20mins before attempting to open it. After rinsing away to excess dye all you need to do is squeeze out the water and let it dry.

The nylon seems to have taken the dye rather well. There appears to be a slight sheen to the yarn, which is either from the nylon or because the BFL fibres were a good grade.

I'm excited to see how the colours knit up.

Dyeing Sock Yarn

Another productive day today!
I placed a fairly large order with World of Wool at the beginning of the week. They have a great selection of wool and at excellent prices. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to build up the selection of acid dyes I have. Lately, I have been knitting a lot of socks so it would only make sense to experiment with dyeing sock yarn. Here is a wee step by step for hand painting your own sock yarn:

 You will need:

• White/natural sock yarn (as many skeins as you wish to dye)
• Acid dyes (I have used Eurolana)
• White vinegar
• Empty glass jars
• A brush
• Plastic sheeting/newspaper
• Cling film
• A steamer or a large pot

Soaking:

Your skeins will need a good soaking to allow the dye to penetrate the yarn. Soak the yarn in warm water with a little bit of wool wash and leave for about 20 minutes.

I have chosen a sock yarn that is 75% Blue Faced Leicester and 25% nylon. Most commercial sock yarns will have a small percentage of man made fibres blended in to make the yarn more durable. Tears would certainly be induced after spending hours dyeing and knitting your socks only for them to withstand a few weeks of wear.

 Set up your work area/dye solution:

Make sure your work area is covered with a plastic sheet or layers of newspaper...or both! Your glass jars should be clean and it is helpful if you have lids for them. This way you can save any mixed up dye solutions in a dark place until your next dyeing adventure.

The acid dyes are in powder form so you can mix a few of them together to achieve the colours you desire or keep them as flat bold tones. You will only need a small amount of powder so be sparing! It is quite difficult to tell how the colour will look on your yarn, so it is handy to keep a piece of white paper nearby to paint a little bit of solution onto, therefore you can gauge if you need to add more dye.

Add your dye into the jar, mix with roughly 100mls of cold water and add two spoonfuls of vinegar to help fix the dye. Mix up all of the colours you need.

Lay out some cling film and place your skein on the surface, making sure you have squeezed out as much water so the yarn is only damp.

 Let's get painting!

Here comes the creative part. You can simply paint the yarn in stripes, contrasting colours, half and half, etc. A water colour brush (like the one I am using) is probably not the best idea because it takes forever to paint the yarn. A foam brush would be a better option.

The first yarn I painted is a mixture of a dull browny red, purple and navy. The second had a lime green base colour with darker olive tones and some more purple and navy dotted out in the middle section. It is exciting to think about how these will both knit up!

Take care in thoroughly covering all of the yarn with dye by turning it over and checking for hidden white parts.

Once it is all painted, wrap the yarn up in the cling film so it is all sealed and ready to be steamed.


Steaming:

Place your wrapped up skeins into the steamer. If you only have a large pot, you can make a shelf for steaming out of some tin foil with some holes punched into it as long as the yarn isn't touching the water. You can also use a microwave for setting the dye in yarn. Roughly around 6 minutes should work although you shouldn't use the same microwave for food and dyeing. Similarly with the steamer pot, it should only be used for dyeing. 

Put the lid on and let it steam for 30 mins. Allow it to cool for a few minutes, then unwrap and rinse out any excess dye under some cold water. I normally hang yarn in the shower to dry with a small weight. Once your yarn is dry...

Ta da!




Now your beautiful freshly dyed yarn is ready to knit with/sell/give to a friend.
I can hardly wait to knit these into socks!