Caryll Designs
Painted & Dyed Diversions
While none of these lace designs are my originals, I have used yarns other than those indicated in the original patterns and hand dyed them to suit my whim using a variety of techniques and dyes.
 This
is "Faina's Scarf" pattern from Fiber Trends. I hand knit this in Henry's
Attic "Silk & Ivory". I added one extra pattern repeat to the scarf's length
to incorporate the full skein of yarn and hand dyed it in separate natural indigo and cochineal dye baths.
My niece, Gretchen, models for me. |
 I
believe this is a German doily design. It is about 36 to 40 inches in
diameter, hand knit using No 10 crochet cotton. I hand dyed it in two baths
of natural turmeric and natural indigo. I love the soft teal, gold, and blue
mottled colors! |
All of these small sample swatches were knit on my Brother 970 knitting machine. I used a 70% Wool, 30% Nylon yarn. These are painted with Procion MX Dyes using a vinegar fixative. I experimented with different techniques, some with sodium alginate thickener, some without, some on dry fabric, and some on pre-soaked wet fabric. The results are fun and interesting, the possibilities are endless!
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I made a bunch of these small round doilies pictured on the left as Christmas "Poinsetta" ornament gifts. They were fun quick knits and easy to paint with dyes. Both doilies are No 10 crochet cotton which takes the Procion MX dyes beautifully. I love knitting doilies as the shapes they create seem to be miraculous!
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These three images are of a pattern for "Feather & Fan Shawl" by Eugen Beugler in the book A Gathering of Lace. I knit this shawl in 2001 using hand dyed skeins of Henry's Attic Pony 2Ply Merino Wool lace weight yarn for the Feather and Fan patterning. The center flower design was knit separately first using the same yarn in its natural white state, then painted with acid dyes and steamed. I did the flower twice as I had problems with the steaming process. I had dyed the yarn skeins the year before so mixing dyes to match was a bit of a trick as well. This was an educational experience! I chose the shawl variation with the central dividing cables between feathery repeats. I entered this in our local county fair. The judge's comments said "nice dye job, machine knitting not judged", which blew my mind. Gee, I thought the hand knit work was obvious! I don't believe there is a machine made that can knit circular lace such as this, can you imagine? I suppose my hand knitting rivals a machine which is a compliment, I think;-) I love the undulating waves that Feather and Fan designs create with hand painted yarns.
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