So, I spent Mother’s Day in isolation with my husband and kids. We had just moved back to Vegas and it was the tail end of the 2 weeks we needed to spend in self-quarantine. I think my husband felt kind of bad for not being able to do anything (I don’t know why, I was able to take a nap that day so I was happy) and he told me I should order some yarn. So I did. I had been wanting to try out dying my own yarn for awhile and I ordered 7 skeins of Knit Picks Stroll Bare Yarn and 6 skeins of Hawthorne Multi in ‘Lents’ colorway. I knew what pattern I wanted to use the Hawthorne for , but the Bare Yarn was still unknown. Until I saw Ume Shawl by Emily Walton.
I watched YouTube videos by ChemKnits and figured using Kool-Aid for my 1st attempt was the smart way to go. So, I went to the grocery store and bought Kool-Aid mix…..A LOT of Kool-Aid mix and started dying.
The 1st 3 skeins I dyed, I dip dyed. I couldn’t believe how bright the colors were and how everything was working out! The last 4, I did immersion dying and sprinkled different flavors of Kool-Aid on top to create speckles. After they dried, I caked them up and LOVED how vibrant the colors were. Then I started knitting the pattern….
When we go to restaurants (well, when we used to), my daughter and I would always have a shawl with us because the a/c always seems to be blasting directly down onto our table. I had wanted a bright, colorful, summer shawl. I wanted something made with colors I would not normally go for, and that is exactly what I got.
The pattern itself is clear and well written, very easy to follow. My colors made me really hesitate. There were a few times I wanted to just rip it out and not use what I had spent 2 days dying. But my husband kept saying he really liked it and I should keep going. So, I did. I’m glad he said it, because I did end up with something very different from anything else I have knit in the past and it’s fabulous. But….I will be knitting it again as a fade that I will dye myself.
