Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Jenny's Fetching

SIL Jenny finally got her birthday present, and I am able to post all the details about it on my blog without ruining the surprise! Happy Birthday, Jenny.

So DH asks me, about a month out, what I think of making a present for Jenny for her birthday. She loved the Fetching gloves I'd made for myself about a year ago, so I decided to combine that with the spinning I've learned so far, the dyeing I've been playing with, and the knitting I know and love to make her a completely one-of-a kind gift.

I start off with double checking with MIL what her favorite colors are. Black and Green, she says. So I begin with my stash of "black" roving.

Not very black actually, and spun up it comes off as distinctly grey. Not a problem. I'll add 1/4 tsp of Wilton's Moss Green, a dash of vinegar, and let it sit.

After dyeing I abused the yarn, which essentially entails lots of hot soapy water and agitation. I don't have pictures of this because I do it in my bathtub, and I'm not risking my digital camera in such a watery environment.

Afterwards, it's absolutely gorgeous. Here it is next to just a little bit of the grey 2-ply that was left over.

And here's a claustrophobic close-up, showing how well the color really turned out.

Then came the simpler part, making the gloves. I did it on my Grandmother's plastic DPNs, which really work well for these gloves.

And here they are, resting artistically on my white roving. Gently washable, and I just heard from her last night, they're just the right color. Yay!

1 comment:

knottygnome said...

wow that turned out fabulous! i have some of the black tones roving left myself. thanks for the inspiration.