Lately I have been taking some of my favorite variegated colorways and using the same color combination to dye them in an entirely different way. I call it my Splashed and Speckled method. While traditionally variegated yarns are dyed with blocks of color, the Splashed and Speckled colorways are dyed in a more free-floating way where the colors are added in a way that is more random and each skein comes out a little differently.

I have been thinking that it would be a lot of fun to find some patterns that use one skein of each that I can share with you, so I went on a hunt for some great 2-skein patterns. What I ended up choosing were 4 different sock-weight shawl patterns from 4 great designers that are made to use 2 different colorways. I’ll share the links to each of the patterns at the bottom.

Meanwhile, I got to do one of my favorite things as a dyer–put together some great color combinations. I started by choosing a variegated skein and its splashed and speckled pair, and then I also included some combinations that have one tonal or speckled skein and one variegated or splashed and speckled skein because some of the patterns seem just made for that combination. I’m calling these sets of two skeins Pas de Deux.

The first few combinations were dyed on my So Silky Sock base, which is made of 50% superwash merino and 50% mulberry silk. I am in love with this yarn base! This first combo is one I’m using myself right now along with Monet’s Cathedral in a Free Your Fade shawl. The yarn on the left is the Splashed & Speckled version of Van Gogh while the one on the right is the variegated version of Van Gogh. Both were inspired by his painting, “Irises.”

 

This next one includes one skein of Monet’s Cathedral as well as my original Monet colorway. If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you’ll remember I asked for help naming Monet’s Cathedral. It was a hard decision!

 

This next one is Aubergine along with Jane Eyre. What’s interesting is that even though the eggplant color came out almost the same on the two skeins, it was made using entirely different dyes.

 

Now onto the ones I dyed on my Sparkly Merino Sock base, which is made of 92% superwash merino and 8% lurex. It really sparkles, but it’s also still nice and soft.

The first one of these combines Kingfisher (inspired by Hopkins’ poem, “Kingfishers Catch Fire”) and Persimmon.

 

This next one may be my favorite combination. The colors look made for each other.

 

Here are both versions of Mermaid Tail together:

 

These two look made for each other as well. You can’t see it from here, but Strawberry Sorbet has a lot of subtle speckling.

 

I think this would be great for anyone who loves pastels, but especially a little girl. There’s Blush of Dawn, which is just the softest loveliest speckled pink, with Tutu, which was inspired by my own dancing daughter.

 

This one shows both versions of Anachronism. Do you have a preference between the Splashed and Speckled on the left and the variegated version on the right?

 

Here’s Cleopatra with a slightly different option. This time I put it with Peachy Keen. When my husband and I first got married, we painted our first little condo this shade of peach.

 

Last but not least is Smaug’s Treasure combined with Burgundy Rose. There’s so much going on in Smaug’s Treasure that I think pairing it with a nice tonal yarn with just a little variation is perfect.

 

Now onto the patterns.

Crosswave Shawl by Emjay Bailey – This beautiful pattern was created by a fellow indie dyer, and it’s free with no restrictions. How great is that?

Sea Grass by Janina Kallio – This one looks so graceful and lovely, don’t you think?

Summer Camp by Laura Aylor – I thought this looked great and like that she said the pattern is easy to memorize. Perfect for knitting on the go!

Martha’s Meadow by Lisa Hannes – The beautiful detail in this pattern makes me think it would be best suited to one multi-colored skein and one tonal skein so as not to overwhelm the design.

Sometime soon I would like to feature some DK-weight designs. Do you have a DK-weight pattern you love that uses two skeins? I’d love to hear from you!

Monsoon season has started in earnest here. On the downside the increased humidity means yarn will take longer to dry, but on the upside we really need the rain after an especially dry spring and hopefully the rainy afternoons will give me a little more time to knit.

On a completely different topic, I’m trying to decide whether to add a second DK-weight yarn base or a sport-weight base to my fall line. Do you tend to use more of one than the other? What’s your favorite weight of yarn these days?