Camaj Fiber Arts - The Fine Side of Fiber

HOW TO DYE SARI SILK RIBBON YARN

Sari ribbon yarn comes in all sorts of colors, just not the colors I needed. So I thought I would just dye it myself. It's easy and the best thing about silk is it doesn't felt so you can do all sorts of things to silk that you can't do to wool. It sort of feels good to be able to break the rules and still end

up with an amazing end result.

What you will need:

Sari ribbon yarn

Gloves

Dye - I prefer Pro chem of Jacquard

Large dye pot

2 long spoons

Stirring spoon

Plastic wrap

Steamer

Pro Soft

1. First you will need some beige sari ribbon yarn

2. Loosley tie it in four places with a figure eight tie. I wet mine in water (the temp does not matter) with a glug of vinegar. You could use a tablespoon or so of citric acid in place of the vinegar if you want. It doesn't need long, about five or ten minutes.

3. Remove and squeeze out excess water. Put a long spoon through one of the ends and place another long spoon over the top like in the photo.

4. Now roll the spoons together till you are at about the half way point of the skein.

5. Make a dye pot with about four inches of water. I use Pro Chem dyes and make a nicely saturated solution. Balance the spoons across the top of the pot so about half the yarn is submerged in the dye pot. Smoosh down the yarn with a spoon. Remember to use utensils and pots designated only for dying. Turn heat to low and keep the yarn in for about 10 to 15 minutes. The dye with NOT exhaust. Take the yarn out when you are happy with the color.

6. Gently squeeze out the yarn with rubber gloved hands. Now you have half the skein dyed.

7. Put the spoons through the dyed half of the skein. Make another dye pot of a contrasting color and submerge the other half in the dye pot. I put a bit of the red in the yellow so I would get a nice color blend.

8. Remove the yarn when you are satisfied with the color and squeeze out the excess water in the sink. Use rubber gloves or you will have pink hands. Hint: Put a winter glove on first then a large rubber glove over that. You can now put your hand in simmering water with no problems.

9. Put the dyed yarn on saran wrap and fold over the edges and roll it up loosely jelly roll style.

10. Place the roll in a steamer and steam for about 30 minutes.

11. When done remove from the pot and rinse in water with a bit of Pro Soft. This will add softness to the yarn. Soak for about 10 to 20 minutes. You can use any temp water you want. When done soaking rinse and squeeze the skein under running water, you should have no bleeding at all. Hang unweighted to dry.