I attended Knit Michigan in Bloomfield Hills last week – and I could have spent all morning dyeing skein upon skein of my own yarn. It was so much fun! You can make your colorful yarn, perfect to have on hand for any crafting need, with a familiar grocery store item – Kool-Aid.
Materials
- Individual packets of Kool-Aid in your choice of colors
- 1 skein of wool yarn, worsted weight (acrylic yarns don’t absorb the color like wool does)
- Plastic bowls
- Plastic spoons
- Plastic wrap
- 1-cup measuring cup
- Dish gloves
- Newspapers
- Scissors
- Hanger
Instructions
1. Place newspapers on a table to get your yarn station ready. Fill your plastic bowl with one cup of lukewarm water. Add your Kool-Aid packet and mix thoroughly. No need to add sugar this time; this is a sugar-free project!
| 2. Once the “dye” mixture is ready, cut a length of yarn from the skein. A few dozen inches works well to absorb the color. You don’t want to put the whole skein in at once! Place the yarn in the bowl. With your gloves on, squish the yarn in the liquid to absorb the mixture. Leave the yarn in the bowl longer if you want a deep color. If not, a few minutes will do the trick. |
3. Over the sink, remove the yarn from the bowl and squeeze out any excess moisture.
| 4. Tear off a sheet of plastic wrap and place your yarn at the bottom of it. Roll the yarn in the plastic. Place the yarn roll in the microwave and place the power setting on low or “1.” Make sure the microwave isn’t on the highest power level – you’ll burn your yarn and melt the plastic! Heat for one minute. Turn the roll over and heat for one more minute. | |
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5. Remove the yarn from the microwave and rinse in lukewarm water back in the sink. Squeeze out the excess water. Hang your yarn on a hanger and hang to dry over night. |
6. Repeat this process as many times as you’d like, depending on how many colors you want to create!
| 7. When your yarn is ready, what will you make with it? Friendship bracelets? Bookmark tassels? If you make something, send a picture of it to me, lish@www.metroparent.com. We may feature it in a future Make It blog! |
