Don't be stingy with the Kool-aid! I was and got pastel yarns as a result. Also, be prepared for a bizarre mix of wet wool and Kool-aid smell.

I've tried Kool-Aid dying both on the stove and in the microwave, and had much better results using the stove. The dye just wasn't being absorbed in the microwave, even though I kept nuking it (and if you do that you risk overcooking the yarn). So if I were you, I wouldn't bother trying to borrow a microwave. Good luck.

My mum does fabric and silk dyeing, because she is a quilter, so i have witnessed this process many times. If you use pre-fab dyes, some require special ingredients for setting the colour, etc. I would start out simple and move to more complicated processes as you get more comfortable. Also, some of the dyes aren't wallet friendly, so you may want to invest in a set of colours with friends and share, as you are not liable to use all the colours yourself. I have never seen the Kool-aid process before, except the occational Barbie Beauty Parlour stint, but the results are fabulous. I am going to take this home to my mum to show her all the fun things, and maybe join her on her next dyeing adventure!

Hey glad you're back! how was the mini-vacay?

Kool Aid works OK but Food Coloring works just as well, and is not so smell-tastic.

http://eoinadesigns.com/ka.html

i've done roving, and pre-made yarn as well. And I agree on the pastel-y part. You gotta use a LOT of food coloring to get deep colors-but I do happen to know a little bit about color mixing so was able to get real nice deep colors by mixing green and red for example.

Also, the I just bought the Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook, it's 1/2 about preparing yarn/fiber to spin, and 1/2 about designing socks. AWESOME book.

if you're not going to use the acid dyes, which are the best for wool, you can try wilton icing dyes (available at michael's). as long as you use vinegar, it will be colorfast. the icing dyes end up with very vibrant colors.

u could soak the yarn in vinegar, wear latex gloves, and just "paint" the yarn by applying color directly to it scooping out the dye and rubbing on.

Hello, I know this post is super old... but I wanted to thank you as it really helped me research the dying of yarn, I am right now going to this stage. I was never interested in dying before, but now, I got into sock knitting which is why I want to learn my own sock yarn. Thank you so much! Great info!

Marlene

Researching dying, found this post. It was so helpful! Thanks!

Thanks for this post! Love it! Gotta try it! Thank goodness things live in perpetuity on the web!

I know this is quite old but I found it so I'm sure others will to and I just wanted to throw a bit of what I have learned out there. One of the first comments mention don't be stingy with the kool-aid/dyes, I just wanted to say that you can also use the natural color yarn and grey and they give some great results and do produce darker colors than the white/off whites. The greys that I've dyed have given an almost heathered look. I think unless I want lighter colors I prefer starting with grey actually.

Found your posting via google search! Great info. I've been buying variegated yarns and wondered how it was done. Awesome links to excellent info. Thanks for sharing!!

I've dyed with both Kool Aid and Acid dyes twice now. I found the microwave usable but will add that you have to have a sufficiently powerful microwave. We recently remodeled our kitchen so I have the junky target microwave, it seemed to work great for both dying silk fabric, wool and silk/wool yarn. You need to nuke the dyed item (wrapped in saran wrap or microwaveable plastic bag) for about 2 minutes. Let it sit for another two then nuke it again for another 2 minutes. After it's cooled a bit. We rinsed our dyed items in a bucket with water and a little synthropol (detergent). You can see some of our results here: http://natknits.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/dye-party-extravaganza/

I thought green Kool-aid looked particularly good on pale yellow yarn. Also, has anyone else noticed that blue kool aid is really difficult to find. I found some on Amazon.com but it was 39.99 for 96 Kool-Aid packets. I don't think I could really use that much.

I am searching for hand-dyeing and found this site.
Thank you for information. It helps me a lot to have an idea of how it likes, what i need to prepare etc.

I just fall in love with beautiful yarns. Currently keep checking the spinning steps and hand-dyeing methods.

This site is very useful!