DK socks and a spot of hand dyeing

I am supposed to be writing my CV (resume) but instead I thought I would share another pair of socks with you.

Can you believe that I have knitted these since my last post 3 days ago? No, me neither. Even more amazing is that I dyed the wool in that time too. Here is the dyed skein.

I already had this skein of West Yorkshire Spinners 100% Blue Faced Leicester Fleece wool DK (Ecru) that I brought with me from the UK. I always intended to dye it but never quite around to it before we left. So when I had a bit of time at the weekend, I googled ‘dyeing with Kool Aid’ and jumped right in. Actually, I used a cheap dollar store equivalent to Kool Aid so it will be interesting to see how the colours last. I used the microwave and didn’t stop to think about the colour application too much, I just made sure that I didn’t mix everything to make a yucky brown. Rather than making up liquid dye, I just sprinkled the powders on and mushed them into the yarn gently.

Here it is balled up  and ready to go.

And here it is knitted up as socks.

The socks are knitted using Christine’s new DK sock pattern/tutorial over at Winwick Mum. This was an excellent use of one skein of DK yarn and I cannot believe how fast the DK knitted up.

As these are 100% wool they are super soft too but they might not be as hard wearing as socks with nylon so I shall look after them. As a caution I think I will set the colours with vinegar. The citric acid in the Kool Aid is supposed to avoid that but I’d be gutted if I washed them and they turned baby pink!

I’m glad I started knitting socks in 4ply then moved on to 6ply, then 8ply as I can appreciate the speed at which these knit up. I might not feel the same in reverse.

Quick sock and quick post.

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