Brighton and I had a good night's sleep and thought we'd get right to it this morning. We talked to Mabel and Joan about Brighton's dyeing/spinning idea, and they jumped on the offer. They'd been knitting so many ready-made items lately that they were worried about having enough yarn for their booth at the bazaar. "This is one of the things I love best about Wool Week -- collaborating with good friends for a good cause," giggled Joan, as she clapped her hands and gave us both a big hug. Brighton was ecstatic at the amount of washed wool in my stash (as if she didn't have the same in her own stash). "You have enough wool around here to make a nice assortment for the bazaar!" She picked through the white Corriedale, while I went to get the dye. "Hey, Brighton. Grab some Grey Gotland for me while you're there. Now where did I put those Kool-Aid packets? Hmm . . . Guess I should spend a little less time with my wool and a bit more time organizing in the kitchen."
Brighton and I collided in the kitchen doorway, barely managing to hold on to the supplies and avert disaster. It's been some time since I did any dyeing, but I was pretty sure there were plenty of colours to choose from. "Let's see . . . Grape, Blue Raspberry Lemonade, Mixed Berry, Cherry, Tropical Fruit Punch. TROPICAL FRUIT PUNCH? Why in the world is that still here? Oh, Brighton, did I tell you about the awful mess when I used this to dye some wool last year? How was I to know that Kool-Aid puts CORNSTARCH in that flavor?! Gives me the shivers just to think about it. Guess I really do need to clean out around here." Anyway, the other colors offered lots of mixing options. "I'm going to make some dark red, so we'll put two parts of Mixed Berry into this glass." Brighton just stood there smiling while I rambled on. "Oh, Bunty, you're the best! Do you always talk to yourself like this?" After a good laugh, we got back to the project of dyeing our wool . . .
"What about doing the Corriedale in a light teal color?" Knowing that Brighton's favorite colour is teal blue, I'd already prepped for the mix. "Now how did I know you'd pick that color? Let's see . . . here they are. One Grape, a Blue Raspberry Lemonade and a Cherry. That should do it!"
"Hey, Bunty, why don't you add the water to the glasses with the Kool-Aid powder while I open the window?" Kool-Aid is some toxic stuff. The powder can damage your lungs if breathed in, and the right color can really stain your hands if you touch it too much. The chemical smell is pretty strong, too, so I definitely recommend opening a window before starting, if you're going to try this yourself. "Let's make two glasses of each colour, just to be sure we'll have plenty to work with. And while you're doing that, I'll get the washed wool into the pre-soak pots." It's best to have your wool soaking in warm water for about a half hour before you're ready to dye it. That helps the fiber take the dye evenly. I speak from experience.
After a 30-minute break and a breath of fresh cold air, it was time to get out the two large pots to use on the stove. While Brighton filled them with clean water, I carefully moved the glasses of Kool-Aid water to the counter. "Ooh, this is my favorite part," squealed Brighton. "You get to see the colour in the dye bath and adjust it to just the right shade that you want. Can't you just imagine how beautiful the wool will look when it's finished?" She grabbed the first lot of soaked Corriedale to put in the pot and . . . light teal, here we come!
With the soaked wool ready in the two dye pots, it was time to take a spoon (plastic or metal is best for this) and gently and slowly push the wool down into the dye bath. Careful is the order of the day, because you can't afford to felt it by causing friction of any kind. As you can see, Brighton is a pro at this.
We each carried a pot over to the stove, turned the heat up and waited for them to come to a boil. After that, it's a matter of "wait and see". We just had to let the pots simmer for about a half hour while waiting for the wool to absorb the dye. It's that simple! "How 'bout a quick snack, Bunty?" During Wool Week, I don't have time to do much cooking or cleaning, but we managed to round up a few things that didn't require a lot of clean-up. Wool dyeing is a good project for cool weather like this, because it can get quite steamy and warm in your kitchen on a hot day. "Bunty, do you hear that annoying little squeaking sound? What is that?" "It's a cricket in the kitchen wall. It's been driving us crazy for the last week, but Eliot is working on getting it out of there." Hmm . . . how does one relocate a cricket living in the wall?
Cricket forgotten (ignored, anyway), Brighton and I sat down at the kitchen table for a good "chin wag" and a cup of hot chocolate. Neither of us heard Harold's knock, but we felt the cold draft as he rushed in to the warm kitchen. "Wow, Harold! How did you know it was snack time?" He smiled that little crooked smile of his. "Well, I just figured everyone is always hungry for a doughnut! Actually, Eliot called and asked if I'd bring him something. He knows you're busy out here. That's why I brought the BIG box. What's that squeaking sound? You should get Eliot to fix that. It's annoying."
"So, Harold," asked Brighton, as she picked out a nice sour-cream doughnut. "How are your new sheep? Have you named them yet?" Harold was positively beaming with pride. "They're amazing! The boy is called 'Carper', the girl 'Ruth'. Old family names, of course. Ha. I wonder if my relatives would be honored or horrified at having sheep named after them. Anyway, they're American Tunis sheep, a Conservation Breed with a great history. Very ancient. Back in 1799, the Bey of Tunis gifted some Tunis Barbary sheep to the U.S. government. Apparently, George Washington even used a Tunis ram to build his personal flock of sheep at Mt. Vernon (that was after he was done being President). And lots of other Presidents had them, too . . . John Adams, Thomas Jefferson . . . it was a really popular breed before the Civil War. But so many flocks got killed during the War that the breed has never been able to recuperate. Just imagine. Carper and Ruth might be straight out of George Washington's flock . . . or Thomas Jefferson's." Harold really does love his sheep. And doughnuts.
So captivated with Harold's story, we finished our doughnuts without even realizing that so much time had passed. The wool! It was time to check and see how it was doing. "Look at this, everybody! It's almost finished! And it's just the colour we wanted."
Brighton rushed over so quickly that she almost bumped me right into the pot. "It's beautiful! What a perfect shade! That was so fast! Has it really been half an hour already? Oh, I can't wait to see it spun into yarn!" Brighton always speaks with exclamation points.
"Time to get out the colander and drain the wool. Better get a towel, too." Brighton was quivering with excitement while we were getting everything out. In a hurry to get back to his sheep, Harold excused himself and hollered over his shoulder. "I'll let you girls take care of this. I've gotta get back to Carper and Ruth. They're so new that they still get a little lonely without me. Enjoy the rest of the day and the doughnuts. And tell Eliot to get that cricket outta here."
As soon as Harold had gone, we prepped to drain and rinse the wool. "Brighton, let me put the colander in the sink, while you grab the towel and drying rack. Ooh, this is so much fun. I don't know why we wait so long to get together and dye wool. I've got ever so much stash here that's just begging for color. Let's not wait so long next time. And let's try some crazy colors. Whoops, better pay attention to my work here."
The Corriedale was the first to come out of the water. The colour was perfect, and we chattered on about the lovely socks and mittens that could be knitted with the yarn made from it. "Sorry, Brighton, but I have to pay close attention to the rinsing for a minute." Brighton understood why I needed to be quiet. It's a fine line between careful rinsing (without felting) and leaving the excess dye water on the wool. If you don't rinse it well, the wool will drip all over the place (dyeing the counters and floors), and the finished product will rub dye onto everything it touches.
Brighton started patting a bit of the excess water off the wool with the towel (always being careful not to felt the wool, of course), while I emptied the Gotland into the colander to drain. "Oh, Bunty! This is so fun. I can't wait 'til this is dry tomorrow and we can start spinning it! This would make a lovely hat . . . or a scarf." (Brighton sees the world through "teal-coloured glasses".) The Corriedale had taken the dye as well as we'd hoped. On to the Gotland . . .
My eye was on the gorgeous wine colour lying in front of me. "I can imagine a beautiful pair of house socks out of this. It looks like the Gotland is holding more water than the Corriedale, though. It's going to take a bit longer to dry. Hope it's ready for tomorrow's spinning day."
"Let's put the drying rack in the room out back, Brighton. The dripping water won't hurt the stone floor, so we can leave it there overnight. I know it's cold, but that shouldn't bother the wool." "Bunty, it's WOOL! It'll keep itself warm." We both had a good laugh over that. I think it was all the doughnuts and hot chocolate.
We spread the wool into even layers on the rack, ever careful not to stretch or felt it. Wool is quite an amazing fiber. It can absorb up to thirty percent of its weight in water while still feeling completely dry to the touch! That's why it's so important to let it dry thoroughly before working with it. And, once dry, the colours will be even more vibrant than they are now. "There! By tomorrow, this'll be all fluffy and ready to go. Glad this doesn't weigh much. Now, upsy daisy!"
"This has been so fun, Bunty! I agree that we shouldn't wait for next year's Wool Week event to do this again. Now, what have you got for lunch?" Hummus and cheese sandwiches with a quick salad were easy to make and didn't leave much of a clean-up mess. As Brighton was drying the last of the dishes, I cleaned the table off and got ready for dessert. "Surprise! This Apple Cake is an old family recipe. I hope you like it as much as Eliot and I do. You know that I'm always on the lookout for old recipes, and this is one of our favorites. Oh, wait a minute! You've just got to see the new cookbook that arrived this week: 'How to Cook the Victorian Way'. It's actually based on the personal recipe book of Avis Crocombe, a cook who worked for some of our cousins more than 100 years ago. The author sent an advance copy to us, and even Eliot couldn't wait to look through the pictures and 'receipts'. After Wool Week is over, I'm going to start trying some of the recipes. Eliot asked for the Curried Eggs and the Arrowroot Biscuits. The Gingerbread Cake was my pick. Now, what say we take a trip to check on Albie and see Harold's new sheep? Think I'll pack a piece of the cake for Harold and leave the rest for Eliot. Grab your jacket, and we'll brave the bad weather!"
Be sure to check back tomorrow for more Wool Week fun. Brighton and I are looking forward to spinning the wool that we dyed today, but a bit of a rest-up is in order now!