Friday is Dyeday.

Tuesdays are called Holy Tuesday at my house. That is because my family knows that that day is sacred. Nothing else gets scheduled for Tuesdays because that is the day I go to the “open Knit” at my LYS, SPIN. And Fridays are Dyedays. I try to do some dyeing every Friday. Yesterday I decided that I would dye some merino roving that I purchased at the CedarburgWoolen Mill as a gift for my daughter-in-law, Gay. She and I have been dyeing buddies for some time. We have dyed at her mother’s house in Florida, and then in Wisconsin, and at Siever’s School of Fiber Arts, where we have taken Batik classes.

I dyed two lengths of roving using Greener Shades dyes recommended by Deb Menz in her Interweave DVD, Dyeing in the Kitchen. Menz’s book, Color in Spinning, is also an invaluable source and guide I rely on. The first length of clean roving was pre-soaked in a warm solution of 3 parts water and 1 part vinegar. After gently squeezing out the wool, I placed it in the bottom of an enameled dye pot with enough water to make it as Menz refers to, using the technical term,  as “squishy.” I then poured the prepared amounts of dye over the wool, and with a gloved hand pushed down gently on the yarn to insure that the colors would blend, and that there would be no white spots. I then heated the pot to 170 degrees for 30 minutes.

An example of the dye card I try to keep for each job.

First length of roving dyed for Gay recorded on above card.

The painted the second length with the same colors, but in lighter shades. This wool I rolled up in plastic wrap, placed on a steamer rack in my pot, and steamed for 30 minutes. Both lengths were then rinsed gently and hung to dry.

Yarn painted for Gay.

Dye card for yarn painted for Gay.

This morning they were dry, packaged, and mailed in time to arrive on Gay’s Birthday.


If I have left over dye, I either mix them together or add some other color to it. I added some ruby red to some left over amethyst and dyed some Lion Brand Fishermen's wool for my bonus yarn of the day.

Amethyst - Ruby,  gem of a yarn.

Needless to say, Tuesdays and Fridays are my favorites.

Happy days, happy stitches, and to Gay, Happy Birthday.