Dye Hard

Following the wonderful yarn spinning workshop (see previous post), the obvious next step was to go to the natural and vegetable dyeing workshop, both classes conveniently run by my lovely friend Carol of Beetlefelt here in south Manchester. What a wonderful time we all had. Step back a few centuries and the neighbours would have been collecting dry wood in order to watch us sizzle on ye olde barbecue, as we made like a covern of witches, stirring our potent brews, cackling at the amazing spells that we had managed to put on our yarns and fabrics, and running around Carol's garden squealing with delight at the end results.


We used onion skins to produce the most unnatural looking vibrant mustard colour, with the aid of a tin mordant which helps the yarn to take up the dye but also causes a chemical reaction. We also produced a rather delicious smelling brew from blackcurrants and a salmon pink colour was produced by the madder root, famous for its use in yester year on the bright and not at all camouflaged jackets of the king's army.


The photo above shows my very basic handspun wool after dyeing. I love the fact that you can dye using natural ingredients that can be collected from the kitchen, garden or hedgerow for free, and the colours are unbelievable. Needless to say I am now utterly hooked on the witchy business of stirring cauldrons with bubbling noxious contents, and now that I have my own spinning wheel (oh yay, lucky lucky me!) there ain't no stopping me.

My New Obsession

As if having an obsession for beads and more beads was not enough, and knitting and buying yarn and more yarn until my stash bag is full to overflowing, I now have a new obsession. Spinning - not that futile heavy duty static cycling exercise thing where you pedal like fury and get absolutely nowhere. No! Handspinning.

I attended a half day workshop at my friend Carol's studio in Chorlton, Manchester last weekend. First we inspected a Suffolk fleece to see which bits were best for spinning.


Then we learnt to card bits of fleece to get all the crud, dead beetles and bits of hedge out as well as straightening those curly dreadlocks.


We rolled the carded wool into rollags, which were then stretched out before spinning.


Then came the really exciting bit. Of course, if you aren't into yarn and don't have to cross the road to avoid a knitting shop just to save yourself hundreds of pounds, you won't find this exciting at all, but I know a hell of a lot of people who can talk for hours about a nubbly silk, mercurised pure cotton, baby alpaca or even camel yarn that they covet. So, the next stage was to spin the yarn on a drop spindle. This was harder than it looked as the darn thing kept spinning and unspinning until I got into a rhythm.

Finally, we all had a bit of a go on a spinning wheel. This was a little like learning to drive a car, with hand-foot-eye co-ordination going straight out of the window as the yarn whizzed through the machine's orifice faster than I could blink.


So, here's my first attempt at spinning. Truly remarkable and to anyone but me it just looks like something my cats brought in one night, but it is knittable. I have practised my carding and drop spinning technique daily for the last week and have seen a vast improvement. I no longer spin lumpy fat yarn.


Next step - a spinning wheel. I have one on order! This weekend I'm taking another course with Carol - natural vegetable dyeing. Her workshop schedule can be found at www.beetlefelt.co.uk