Indigo Dye, Part II

Actually, this part is about the Tesu that Toni, up at The Fold, set up for me yesterday to overdye the Silk/Merino that I dyed in chamomile last month. I have been rinsing the yarn for more than an hour and it's STILL releasing dye. However - I'm done. I got as much dye out of it as I could, and now it's sitting in a vinegar bath in the hopes that that will set it and it will be done. It's amazing that it's not felted for as much as I squeezed it and rinsed it in constantly changing temps for the past hour and a half.

Yes, at least and hour and half. I have used up all the hot water in the house . . . Which means that that stinky cat pee Indigo yarn is going to have to wait until the water heats up again before I can wash it and get it's horrid smell out . . . It's in the basement now.

There is, however, good news in all of this. I cleaned up the old laundry tubs in the basement because rinsing out this dye in my all-white kitchen just did not seem like a functional plan. I also got my old restaurant rack shelf in from the garage and cleaned that up (6 years of kitchen grease from a former tenant and it sat in the garage for 3 years . . . ). That was a job in itself and entailed the rubber mallet hammer to get bits of it back to how it should be, and then a wash with Dawn, and then a complete coating of Goo Gone, and then working that in and around the nooks and crannies (no English muffins just greasy gunk) to get all grease off. Then another wash with Dawn and a rinse.

It looks pretty damn good for being at least 18 years old!

It's been quite a day - and I have new found respect for indie dyers, like Perfect Day Yarns and Tempted Yarns. Sarah and Stacy, you guys rock hard. I'm going to leave dying to the experts from now on. I loved the classes I took and I feel like I learned a lot, so really, nothing ventured, nothing gained, and I gained knowledge and the certainty that I don't want to do this again :-D any natural yarn I spin is going to stay natural from now on!

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