Good morning and happy Friday to you.

You know, it is a real blessing when your work and your stress-relief are one and the same. That truly is the case for me. We are in the midst of trying to buy a house, and there are definitely some major stressors involved. How do I handle that stress? Well, I pour it all into the dye pots!

I have had a great week of dyeing with lots of new things to show you.

Hand-Dyed Top

Let’s start with the top. I mentioned late last year that I had gotten a bunch of different lovely fiber blends to dye, and I’m still working my way through them. This week I focused my attention on a blend made of 70% Shetland wool and 30% Tussah silk.

Shetland is a good fiber for beginners and experienced spinners alike, and the addition of the Tussah silk adds a touch of luxury without too much challenge for newer spinners. Shetland wool is usually in the range of 28 to 33 microns. As a point of comparison, the merino I use is usually somewhere between 19 and 21 microns and the wool that gives wool a bad name is usually in the range of 40 to 50 microns. In other words, Shetland is still fairly soft but not as soft as merino or Polwarth.

Regarding the silk, Tussah silk is wild silk, meaning that the silk moths eat whatever they like. Tussah silk is still nice and silky, but it’s not as soft or as slippery as Mulberry silk where the moths eat only mulberry leaves. Again, it’s a good choice for a newer spinner.

You can find all three colorways of Shetland/Tussah Top right here.

Stained Glass Sock

I have also dyed up several new colorways on Stained Glass Sock. Here are many of the colorways I have in stock currently:

Some are new this week like Amethyst Dream, Paris, and Marigold. There are so many possibilities for a 3-skein fade shawl among the colorways I have now!

So Silky Sock

I also dyed up several colorways of So Silky Sock this week. I dyed Beautiful Universe on So Silky Sock for the first time, and I am trying to resist putting one in my personal stash. Yep. Me too.

Knit and Chat Infinity Scarf/Cowl Kits

Long before COVID, I was at my knitting group in Arizona, but I was working on a pattern that involved a lot of counting stitches. I discovered that I cannot count stitches and talk at the same time, so I had the idea for an infinity scarf pattern that doesn’t involve counting. I wanted to be able to knit and chat at the same time, but I didn’t want it to be boring, so it includes a lot of different stitch patterns that are fun to work and fun to wear. It’s just that each stitch or stitch combination lasts for one whole round, so there’s nothing to count after casting on. I made it to use a skein of fuzzy Alpaca Lace Cloud in combination with a sock-weight yarn. Here’s what the infinity scarf looks like:

I do have the pattern for sale on Ravelry here, but this week, I am offering some kits that include my Knit and Chat Infinity Scarf and Cowl pattern along with a skein of Alpaca Lace Cloud and a matching skein of one of my sock-weight yarns. These are perfect for the transition into spring to keep your neck cozy and warm!

One Knit and Chat Infinity Scarf Kit should be enough for one infinity scarf plus two cowls. The pattern includes both the scarf option and the smaller cowl option. Alternatively, if you are a weaver, you can use the sock-weight yarn for the warp and the matching Alpaca Lace Cloud for the weft to make a fuzzy cowl or scarf or both.

Here are the kit colorways I have available right now:

You might find some other colorway combos by looking at my Alpaca Lace Cloud collection. If you order a skein of Alpaca Lace Cloud and a skein of any sock-weight yarn at the same time, I would be happy to include the pattern at no charge. Just be sure to mention that you want me to include the pattern in the note to seller when you check out.

That’s everything for today. I hope you have a great weekend. Happy fiber artistry!