Smart ways to prepare and use a dyebath

A dyebath for yarn is prepared by soaking and cooking the raw dyestuff in water. Here are some smart tips for getting started.

Use either an enamel or stainless steel pot (unlike aluminum, copper and cast iron, these materials will not give off chemicals that will affect the dye).

• Your dye pot should be large — eight litres (eight quart) or more — and you will need a wooden spoon or dowel for stirring.

Prepare the dyestuff so that as much colour as possible can be extracted.

• Leaves and blossoms should be shredded by hand into small pieces. Twigs, bark and roots should be cut up into small pieces, and nut hulls should be crushed. Pick out any foreign particles and remove the extraneous parts of plants.
• Put the dye substance into the pot, then cover with water. (Some dye materials must first be soaked in cold water.)
• Cook until the dyebath has become richly coloured, meanwhile adding water as needed to keep the dye substance covered.
• After cooking, strain the coloured liquid through a sieve.
• To the concentrated dye, add enough cold water to make a bath in which the yarn can float freely; eight litres (eight quarts) should be adequate for 250 grams (1/2 pound) of wool.
• Wet the fibres thoroughly, add them to the bath, and bring slowly to a simmer for animal fibres or to a boil for plant fibres.

• Cook until the desired shade of the colour is reached, turning the fibres occasionally with the wooden spoon or dowel so that the bath penetrates them evenly.
• Then allow the fibres to cool either in or out of the bath, and rinse until the water runs clear.
• You may also cool the yarn fibres by rinsing in successively cooler baths.
• After gently squeezing out excess moisture, hang the skeins to dry.
• If there is any colour left in the dyebath, you may reuse the liquid to produce lighter shades.

A dyebath can be stored for several days if it is kept in a refrigerator.

• Storage in the freezer compartment should keep the dyebath for several months, and by adding five grams (one teaspoon) per four litres (four quarts) of the preservative sodium benzoate, you can preserve the dye for a month without refrigeration.

Dying your yarn has never been easier! Remember these tips to prepare and use a dyebath the right way.