It's a Good Day to Dye

I had today off.  I mean, I did next to nothing all day long.  I found that to be quite rehabilitating!  I did leave the house, and after stopping by my regular dive (Starbucks), I met up with Marisa and indulged in half-priced sushi.  Oh, the joys of half-priced anything!  Very delicious, might I add!

After that entrancing little journey, I set out to find the mythical magical A.C. Moore that everyone has been talking about.  I have only been to Michael's and Hobby Lobby (my enabler of my yarn fetish), but the selection can be lacking at both places.  I finally found that blamed thing, even though it wasn't in my GPS.  It can tell me where "Wingz and Thingz" is in the ghetto, but cant tell me where to find a national chain retail store.  Go fig.

Anyhow, I am currently dyeing some yarn.  I've never done this before, so I'm eager to see how it turns out.  I'm using Paton's 100% wool in white, of course...  I didn't have any Kool-Aid to try, but I DID have an ample supply of Tazo tea and Starbucks coffee.  Being that I also was swift-less, I had to wind the damned ball of yarn over the back of a chair.  This menial task quickly earned a spot on my list of "Top 100 Things I Would Pay Someone to Do", right in front of rescue me from a burning building.  It sucks.

After painstakingly partitioning the haphazard hank, I soaked the sucker and split up the partitions into two sections.  Coffee for one, and Tazo "Passion" tea (really an herbal infusion if you want to be specific) for the other.  My hope is to create a striping yarn in brown and magenta, but we'll see how it goes.  After I heated up the water and started "brewing" my yarn, it looks like the yarn's not going to be as vibrant as I had hoped.  Oh well...

Now Im considering adding ink to the mix... Hmmm.... For the sake of experimentation and earthiness, I don't want to.  I spent a long time prepping that yarn, though... so I really want it to come out right!  Oh yeah -- some people add an acid to the mix to make it take to the fiber better.  Vinegar is a great one, so I've heard.  Two problems with that, though:

1.  I freaking HATE vinegar.  Always have, always will.  Vinaigrettes... they're ok.  Vinegar?  Uh uh.

2.  I don't have any.  Probably because of number 1...

So I improvised.  I used lemon juice -- It may have done nothing, but I guess we'll find out, now won't we?