The Adventure Begins with an Idea
I have been spinning roving (processed combed sheep's wool) for over 10 years. I had some wool that was scoured twice by me but still had quite a bit of lanolin still in the wool. Since I volunteer toe work with local kids at a Summer Reading Program (which includes an arts and crafts project), I decided that I wanted to teach them to weave. Here's the basic progress from start to finish.
This is my Ashford Traditional spinning wheel. While it is a very basic wheel I still love her just as much today as when I got her.
Here is a close up of the yarn I was spinning for this project. It's rough looking because I wanted to see what the spun wool would look like if I didn't comb it first. I wasn't a picky about the outcome since I knew it was for a weaving project, so it was a fun experiment.
Here is a photo of the scoured (wool that is gently soaked in hot water with a special soap that removed the lanolin). It was clean but still sticky after two washes, so I wasn't going to make a knitting yarn out of this fiber.
Again, I wasn't picky about the outcome. This is over-spun yarn and you can tell because of the highly energized twist. Some people do this on purpose. I wasn't worried about this outcome, though I don't try to over-spin my yarn typically. Due to the stickiness of the wool and the fact that I didn't comb the wool, you can see lots of irregularities the might be unwanted in a knitted garment but add extra texture to a woven fabric.
I have wanted to dye with Kool-aid for some time now, so I thought this would be a fun project.
I tried to make it as simple as possible after doing a little research on the internet.
The basic recipe was:
- 2 to 3 packets of Kool-aid (the unsweetened)
- a quart glass jar
- tap water
- yarn that I spun
First you need to pre-soak the yarn you are using in water. You only need to do this for 10 - 15 minutes so that the wool is completely saturated with water. This helps the wool receive the dyestuff completely.
I filled the glass jar with a pint of water and two packets of Kool-aid to start. I then used a little whisk to mix well. I used the Kool-aid flavors orange, black cherry, grape, and raspberry. The orange needed three packets since it was the lighter of the four.
Once I added the skein of yarn to the jar, I then added the rest of the water and placed in the hot summer sun. (The lid is off of the orange jar because the skein was a little big and I needed to push it down into the dye bath throughout the day.)
What's nice about using Kool-aid is that it is something that kids can replicate if you wanted to do a simple dye project and it smells like candy. :-)
After letting the yarn sit in the dye all day long, I took the skeins out and rinsed them in warm water and gently squeezing out the excess water. Then I hung them to dry.
The Weaving Project
Sadly, I am given a very limited time to work with the children on this weaving project, so I needed an example for them to follow.
Here I am using some cardboard at the framework of the loom. There are notches cut into the top of the cardboard in such a way that when we remove the final project has an opening at the top. (Sorry the photos aren't great. The motor on my camera was starting to die, although I didn't know it at the time.)
There are 15 notches evenly spaced on this example. You just need an uneven number of notches. Not only are you weaving the front of the cardboard but then you flip it to the backside to continue the weave.
I did a simple weave with the needle going over and under every other warp thread. (The warp threads are the threads that are green in this photo above and below.)
When you end the row going (I go from right to left) under the warp thread (green threads), when you flip the loom over you then continue the pattern and go over the next warp thread.
The simple weave pattern is over, under, repeat.
When I changed colors or just needed to start a new piece of yarn (you should probably only have a piece of yarn as long as your arm or things will get tangled), you will need to overlap the yarns. I will go into more weaving details in another post.
Because the wool still had so much lanolin in it, the dye was resisted in many places in the yarn. I actually liked the effect very much. It was a quickly made project that I was donated all the supplies for and my time, so I wanted it to be a fun learning adventure for me, as well.
I do plan on making more little bags, and maybe even a purse. I will document in more detail that project in the near future. I am currently going through my stash of zippers that I got at our local thrift store since I would like the little purses to be able to hold things and be a little more functional.
Thanks for stopping by and I look forward to hearing from those that have any questions.
All photos are mine and only can be used if you ask my permission. Thank you!