Sunday, October 4, 2009

My New Dyepot!

I never would've guessed I could get this excited over a pot. I love it! I added a massive stainless steel brazier style pot to my dyepot collection. It's huge! The pot needs 2 burners to heat and barely fits on my stove. I can fit up to 1 lb of fiber in it.


I wanted a pot with a lot of surface area for kettle painting fiber and yarn. I like the stockpot style but the dyes don't get to the fibers on the bottom without stirring. We all know what stirring hot fiber does! With this pot there is no stirring needed. :D The pot is wonderful because its shallow and not as heavy as a stockpot would've been.

I've been experimenting with heat, acid, and dye recipes. Sometimes the dye colors splitting is really beautiful so I've been tracking at what temperature and how much acid is needed for certain effects. Here are some of my experiments so far.





Thursday, October 1, 2009

Fiber Club!

I finally started a fiber club! I've been wanting to do one for sometime now and I don't know why I put it off for so long. It's so much fun!

The subscription lasts for 3 months, September, October, and November. Each month the members get one braid of fiber dyed up in an exclusive club colorway. The braid weighs between 3 to 5 ounces depending on what kind of fiber I use for the month. The memberships sold out fairly quickly so I may start a waiting list for the next round for new members. Current members are guaranteed a spot if they choose to be in it again. :)

I wanted to do something really special for the first one so I found an amazing blend! It's 50% silk, 30% superwash merino, and 20% seacell. It is soooo amazing to work with!

My inspiration for the fiber colorway was the Autumn Moon Festival. Every year on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar the moon is at its maximum brightness. It occurs late September or early October. This year its on Oct. 3rd. It is traditonally spent with loved ones to give thanks, eat mooncakes, and make paper lanterns. I focused on the paper lanterns and tried to create September's Fiber Club colorway thinking of the lanterns glowing against the brightly moonlit night sky. Deep plum, purple, navy, and blues with a touch of a fiery glow. I hope everyone will enjoy spinning it while thinking loving thoughts of family and friends. :D