Good morning and happy Friday to you! I am both ecstatic to have cooler whether to look forward to soon and sad to see the slower pace of summer coming to an end. How about you?

Today I want to show you the painting I’ll be using as inspiration for the September club colorway as well as show you what I have dyed up this week.

Let’s start with the painting. It’s Leda and the Swan by Ridolfo Ghirlandaio.

I have been wanting to do this one for quite a while, and I am really excited about creating with these colors for both yarn and art batts. It will be something a little different and (I hope) very elegant and appropriate for autumn. Ghirlandio painted it in 1560.

So long as you join the club by September 1st, you’ll be in time to receive yarn or art batts inspired by this painting.

Fresh from the Dye Pots

This week I have been working my way through the yarn colorways that start with the letter, “p.” I dyed up Paris, Party Like It’s 2023, Phantom of the Opera, Pomegranate, and Pumpkin Spice Latte. I’m dyeing up yarn as fast as I can because I am getting ready for the DFW Fiber Festival in about another month!

I have done some adjusting of recipes this week as well. I changed just one small thing about Paris, and I’m really pleased with how much more vibrant the colorway is now. Here it is on Buttery Soft DK:

I also dyed up more Party Like It’s 2023 on a bunch of different yarn bases. Let me show you how different it looks on non-superwash yarn bases like Buttery Soft DK compared with superwash yarn bases like Squoosh DK:

The one on the left is Buttery Soft DK while the one on the right is Squoosh DK. I used the same dyes and the same technique. The difference is the fact that superwash yarn takes the dye almost instantly while non-superwash allows it to move around. That means the the speckles on Squoosh DK are crisp and clear while the ones on Buttery Soft DK give more of an Impressionist feel.

Which do you prefer? I’m having a hard time deciding myself, but if I absolutely had to decide which one to use, I would probably go for the non-superwash version of Party Like It’s 2023.

The next colorway I dyed is Phantom of the Opera, which is great for all the purple-lovers. It has several shades of lilac and purple plus some deep reds as well so the colorways matches the dark but beautiful drama of the operetta. Here it is for the first time on Squiggle Sock:

After I dyed Phantom, I dyed up Pomegranate. I really love these in-between colors that are hard to define using a simple color term. Is it red? Orange? Pink? It’s sort of in between all of those. This one is a tonal colorway. The latest batch of Pomegranate is a little bit darker than the last batch. Here it is on Sparkly Merino Sock for the first time:

The last colorway I dyed up this week is Pumpkin Spice Latte. Yes, I know. It isn’t even September yet much less actually autumn, and yet here I am telling you about the most autumn-ish of autumn concepts, but how could I resist? Just maybe this colorway will make you think it’s cooler than it actually is if your thermometer says 100 degrees like mine does, and if it’s cool and rainy where you are, then the whether is already perfect for Pumpkin Spice Latte–both the yarn and the drink.

I actually reworked the yarn “recipe” for Pumpkin Spice Latte this year to make it richer and more pumpkin-y. I dyed it on four different yarn bases. Let me know what you think.

Coming Up Soon

As I mentioned above, I’m getting ready for the DFW Fiber Fest which takes place September 22nd through the 25th. If you’re in the area, please come say hello. This will be the first time I’ve taken part in this festival, and I’m really looking forward to being a part of it.

We are also getting ready for Spin Together, which will take place from October 1st through October 8th. If you are a spinner with lots of experience or a new spinner, I’d encourage you to join us. You’ll be able to spin from anywhere, and you can join a team beginning on September 1st.

Question about Fiber Advent Calendar

As I write this, I just have one last yarn Advent calendar available for preorder. I had not planned on making a fiber Advent calendar this year, but now I’m sort of questioning that decision. If I did, each box would contain an ounce of next-to-skin soft fiber for you to combine and spin or felt as you see fit. Let me know if this is something you would be interested in. If there are at least ten people who would like one, I think I’ll go for it.

I think that’s everything for today. Have a beautiful weekend.