Hollywood snow

We've had a few dustings since the last real snow.

In fact, just yesterday we had a fresh inch or so, but it was very peculiar.  It looked like something created in a Special Effects studio, by someone who had never seen actual snow.

This didn't look like snow at all; more like some type of very lightweight plastic material, blown out of a giant machine to turn a film set into

"New England Landscape." 

It wasn't flakes.  

It was fluffy, yet sort of clumpy, bits.

It was bits of clumpyfluff.

I don't know if these picture can convey

 how totally un-snowlike this snow really was.

Maybe a close-up will help?  You can also click any of these pictures
to embiggen.

The weatherpeople say we are likely to receive quite a skyload of snow in the next couple of days.  If it turns out to be more of this fluffy, odd-looking material, I will let you know.  And I won't be complaining.  Two feet of this stuff would certainly be a lot lighter than two feet of real snow.

~~~~~

when life hands you lemons

Well, here's a funny thing.

The moment I added that crazy "Pink Lemonade" to the dyepot, it was apparent: at maximum saturation it was exactly the soft color I was looking for!  

But...I only had one packet, not the four that would probably be necessary.  The last thing I had expected was that I would want to use a full-tilt Kool-Aid color for a pale pink dye. (Seriously.  At full saturation, Kool-Aid tends to be either primary color or neon.)  I had the requisite four packets of several other flavors on hand, but only one Pink Lemonade.  So a loop of yarn floating near the top of the dyepot soaked up all the dye in a heartbeat, and the rest of the yarn was...white.

White, white, white.

Scrambling for more pink dye, I hastily mixed up a packet of "Cherry" flavor in a separate measuring cup, to see if it might work.  As one might expect from something called "cherry," it was red.

Vampire Novel Book-Jacket Red.  Ugh.

It seemed that the only thing to do was to admit defeat, let the yarn dry, and dye it again when more Pink Lemonade was available.  And hope that the overdyed yarn would not be blotchy.  Which it almost certainly would be, darn it.

Then I spotted the box of food coloring which has been gathering dust on the shelf over my stove for about a decade.  Don't ask me why.  Absolutely no idea. 

(To clarify: I know why dust has been gathering, I just don't know why the food coloring was purchased in the first place.)

What's to lose?  I scooped two cups of hot water out of the pot, added one drop of red food coloring, then returned it to the pot near a section of glaringly white yarn.

Not a bad blend.  Quite nice, in fact!

So I did it again, and again, and again, rolling the yarn gently to reveal white sections, until it seemed most of the yarn had been exposed to some kind of dye, and all the dye had been absorbed.

Then, because I had no idea whether the food coloring would wash right out, I tried to wash it out:

Seemed to be sticking...

At this moment, the washed yarn is draped over a shower rod in several loops, drying.  There is a much more light/white than what I had originally envisioned, although the picture below does not capture that. Trust me: still lots of white.  My fingers are crossed that the white sections will enhance the intended project, but only time and a lot of knitting will tell.

Unplanned or semi-expected results seem to be the nature of this kind of dyeing - at least, it seems to be that way whenever I do it, but I'll be very interested to hear from others about their experiences with food dyes!

I'm sure this yarn will look different again when it is dry, but I wanted to take a quick snap to post before the light was gone.  A fun project, another learning experience, and a hank of yarn that will soon be on the needles for a special project  :)

Whew.  I came this close to vacuuming today!
~~~~~

almost too natural

I'm so happy to see comments on the previous post from other people who like to play with fiber-dyeing!  And of course I'm very happy to hear from fans of that most wonderful color: Brown!

But today, we're looking for pink.  And I don't have any botanical materials on hand that will yield pink, so...get out the talking pitchers, it's a Kool-Aid kind of day!

For those who do not have easy access to packets of Kool-Aid powder, here is an example of this loved/hated American beverage:

I'm intrigued by the "natural flavor with other natural flavor," but the lack of caffeine may be an unfortunate oversight.  It doesn't really matter to me how much (or how many) "natural flavors" my yarn acquires, but isn't the idea of wearing caffeinated socks...invigorating??

Wheee!

Please step aside there!

Zippety-doo-dah!

Dancing feet, coming through!

Well, it's a thought.

But this particular hank of yarn is not destined to become socks, so the lack of caffeine is irrelevant.

This time.
~~~

Step One:  the yarn is soaking in plain water.  The idea is that saturated yarn will be more likely to take up the dye evenly.

The next time you see this hank, it will look very different.

I hope!!
~~~~~

So. Kool.

As an example of my nearly limitless ability to avoid cleaning my house, I am preparing to dye yarn.

This is an experiment.  It is always an experiment.  I enjoy experimenting with botanical dyeing, usually with Black Walnut hulls from local trees.

Black Walnuts make brown yarn.  Turns out, I really like brown yarn.  "Brown" is more exciting than it sounds.  Well, it is exciting to me, anyway.

See, here's some:

This yarn is an 80% superwash merino/20% bamboo blend.  Doesn't that color look like soft, sweet, homemade molasses taffy?

Don't you just want to hold it up to your nose and inhale deeply?

Ahhhhhhh.  Mmmmmmm.

No?  Well, okay, moving on.
~~~
Almost exactly 2 years ago, I tried dyeing with Kool-Aid for the first time. There are many, many, many online tutorials for Kool-Aid dyeing, and at least one dedicated group of enthusiasts on Ravelry.com.  The rav group is called What a Kool Way to Dye, and if you want to see projects made with some bright and cheerful home-dyed yarn, that's a very good place to look.

It's easy to see why Kool-Aid dyeing is so popular, especially for a crafty project to do with kids: it is quick, easy, safe, and fun.  The colorful results can be startling (at least to someone who is so enamored of the many subtle and delightful shades of brown) but there is also a sense of playfulness that comes with the crayola crayon hues.

This is what my first Kool-Aid experiment produced, and it is quite tame by Kool-Aid standards:

I was aiming for variegated forest greens on this 100% superwash merino.  After my first "flavor" produced a brilliant green that would knock you over backwards, some mighty fast back-pedaling with a blue "flavor" turned down the visual volume and yielded this spruce-and-snow-colored, variegated yarn.  Whew!  Nice save!

I wish I could show you the gorgeous socks that were made with this yarn!  But I did not make them.  Lucy Locket made them, and if you happen to read this and have a snap of those socks handy, Lucy, please email it along and I will add it to this post!!  I love those socks!

Update: Yay!  Lucy came through with a picture  :) 

~~~

After that first rollercoaster Kool-Aid experience, I try to be prepared to just have fun and expect the unexpected.  But this time is different.  This time, I am looking for a specific result.

Kool-Aid: the Search for a Soft Pink

I've done my research, poked through my box o' dye stuff, and found what I hope will produce a soft (Soft, please! Do you hear me Kool-Aid?) pink tone, on a hank of yarn I've been saving for Something Special.

The yarn is a squooshy fingering weight from Cherry Tree Hill, called Sockittome Select.  It's 80% superwash merino and 20% nylon.  I plan to use 1/4 to 1/2 the Kool-Aid I would expect to produce a saturated color.  My guess is that the superwash component will soak up the dye like crazy, and the nylon will absolutely not, producing a yarn that has some fairly deep pink and some almost white fibers blended together along its entire length.  (Mind you, this may be totally and completely wrong.  Yarn dyeing!  So exciting!!)

Would you like to come along for the ride?  Because I am not writing this post after the fact; I am writing in "real time."  The yarn has not yet been soaked, the dyepot has not been filled or even been dusted (see opening line on this post).  Nope, it's Saturday and the yarn will be dyed on Sunday.

At least, that's the plan...

And the winners are....

The results are in, for the very first Comptonia giveaway!

The nuts & bolts:
I assigned a number to each entry in each drawing, then used the free random number generator from random.org to select the winners.

Drumroll, please.

The winner of the tiny embroidered purse from Mongolia is:

InJuneau

Congratulations, InJuneau!  Your little prize will be on its way north (way way north!) as soon as you send me your mailing info via an email or a PM on rav.
```
Another drumroll?
No?
Too much suspense?
Okay, then. Without further ado:

The winner of a felted wool eyeglass case from Kyrgyzstan is:

Ronda at Mountain Delights

Congratulations, Ronda!  Please email your mailing address and tell me whether you would like the grey or the tan case, and I will send your selection ASAP.
~~~
Thanks to everyone who entered the drawing and to everyone who has visited during the first two weeks of this blog's existence. I appreciate each and every comment and email, and am grateful for all the encouragement!

It's very flattering that so many readers have chosen to "follow" Comptonia.  I am such a rookie blogger, I am still trying to understand the difference between subscribing to a blog in an RSS feed (which is what I have always done in the past) and "following" or "joining" a blog.  (Is also a there a difference between "following" and "joining"?  Oh, there is so much to learn!)

It's lovely to meet so many new bloggy-friends, thanks to Vicki's Grow Your Blog Party.  I'm still wending my way through the list of participants, and enjoying each garden, project, and cup of tea along the way  :)

There will be more posts to come soon, on this fledgling blog.  There will be crafty creative stuff (I hope), trees and plants (lots), cooking (a little), and occasional guest appearances by Piper, who now wishes me to address her as Your Bloggy Highness...but I am resisting!

And, of course, there will be goats.  Please come back and visit again  :)
~~~~~