My Sweater from scratch - dying & blending the wool

My finished batts:

In an effort to get a red with depth I first kettle dyed the wool (the Corriedale Fleece I got at MDS&W in 2010 - my first fleece) with three colors of Greener Shades - Ruby red (main color), Fire Red and Black. This is the fiber on the left half of the below picture. The resulting color was good but there was not as much variety as I wanted so I dyed some more fiber with the Fire Red (top right corner) and some more with Amethyst Purple (bottom right corner). The main color was all carded first then I then drum carded the three together to blend the red of my dreams! Each little nest is about 8 grams main color, 4 fire red and 2 amethyst purple.

My Sweater from Scratch - it is a process!

I am mid way through my sweater from scratch and it has been an experience. It started with seeing and buying the most beautiful, very clean 5.2 pound corriedale fleece from Rupperts at my second MD Sheep and Wool Festival in 2009.


Isn't it beautiful! I scoured it next - not a little undertaking! Several washes in special soap, temperature controlled with no agitation (to prevent felting). Here is a little I combed:

Next dye - I decided I wanted a rich multifaceted red. I had some Greener Shades dye and did three batches of wool, kettle dyed. Results in the next post!