Learn to dye yarn: How to hand-dye your own yarn

Curious about taking up the fun hobby of yarn dyeing, but not sure how to start the process? Then this guide is just the help you need! On this page, we'll give you neat tips and tricks for yarn dyeing, free guides to different dyeing techniques and insights into the essential materials. Then it is up to you to grab your yarn and start experimenting with colour. However, hand-dyeing your own yarn is highly addictive once you get started.

On this page you can learn:

1. What materials you need for yarn dyeing
2. Good tips for comfortable yarn dyeing
3. Guide to gradual yarn dyeing by hand
4. Guide to multi-coloured yarn with speckles and dots by hand
5. Guide to through-dyeing yarn by hand

What materials you need for yarn dyeing

For your yarn dyeing to be a success, it is important to have the materials in order. First and foremost, this involves yarn, jute cord and batik dye for the hand dyeing itself. However, you will also need materials for the acid bath as well as accessories for heat treating the yarn.

The acid bath is essential for the colour to be properly absorbed into the yarn. In our guides, we have made an acid bath with the mixture ratio of 1 dl white spirit vinegar to 4 dl water. In order to fixate the colour completely to the thread, the yarn is heated several times after the hand dyeing is finished. We use a microwave for heating, which makes the process both faster and easier. Under each colouring guide you can read more in detail about the different steps the technique involves. Materials for your yarn dyeing:

• 1 bowl
• 1 measuring cup
• White spirit vinegar
• 1 microwave + 1 microwave-safe bowl
• Film for microwave
• 1 yarn skein
• Jute string
• Batik dye
• Disposable gloves or cleaning gloves and apron
• 1 needle / pipette / brushes
• Wool soap/wool detergent

You can also buy our yarn dyeing kit where we have gathered the most important materials for hand dyeing yarn, so you'll be ready to go in no time. When it comes to yarn, Nordic Sky Sundsvall is perfect for yarn dyeing as it is natural coloured and therefore easily absorbs the batik dye. If you want a different colour result, you may want to experiment with hand-dyeing yarn that already has colour. For through-dyed yarn skeins, we have used Infinity Hearts Baby Merino, for example.

Hand-dyeing Yarn by Rito Krea - Yarn-dyeing DIY guide

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Nordic Sky Sundsvall Yarn for Hand Dyeing

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Nordic Sky Sundsvall Alpaca Yarn for Hand Dyeing

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Nordic Sky Sundsvall Super Fine Merino Yarn for Hand Dyeing

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Infinity Hearts Cord/Jutes Cord Brown/Nature 2mm - 100 meters

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Fabric Dye 100 ml Red

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Infinity Hearts Umbrella Swift Yarn Winder & Wool Winder...

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Delicate Wash Wool

Textile colour / Batik colour dye

Up to 33%

Jute Thread

Aprons and disposable latex gloves

Paint brushes

Foam Paint Brush/roller

Palettes / Paint tray

Wool Winders and Umbrella Swift Yarn Winders

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Nice tips for a comfortable yarn dyeing experience

1) Don't be afraid to experiment! Yarn dyeing is a learning process, where through playing with batik dyes you will learn what works for you. There is no wrong result, because each yarn thread will be completely unique. So don't hesitate to give it a go.

2) Acid bath before and after yarn dyeing! Your yarn skein should be in an acid bath for at least half an hour before you start yarn dyeing. After dyeing, place the now hand-dyed yarn back in the acid bath for at least half an hour before rinsing and washing the yarn in a lukewarm bath of water and wool soap. The acid bath ensures that the colour is fixed to the yarn, and is therefore an important step in all our colour guides.

3) Remember your apron and gloves! It can quickly become a messy affair once you open the batik dyes. So remember to wear both an apron and disposable gloves. It may also be a good idea to cover your work area with disposable cloth or similar. That way you don't have to worry about batik dye on your stuff.

4) Use a paint palette for your batik colours! Whether you're working with one or several batik colours, it's a good idea to pour the colours into a paint tray or cup. That way you can easily keep track of the different batik colours, while they're easier to access.

5) Get varied colour results with different materials! It's easy to create beautiful colour expressions in your yarns. The batik dye fixes easily into the threads, which means you can use a pipette, a needle, brushes, your fingers or a combination of all to create yarn skeins with unique colour play. Whether you use a dyed or undyed yarn also affects the end result.

Read the full guide for more info on acid bathing, dyeing and yarn fibres: Hand-dyeing yarn with batik dye in the microwave

Tiered yarn dyeing gives your yarn a smooth transition between the wonderful colours you use. If you want to hand-dye yarn to give it a vibrant look, graduated yarn dyeing is just the thing. The technique is great when using two shades, but you can easily use even more batik colours depending on how colourful you want the graduation to turn out.

Read the full guide: tiered yarn dyeing by hand with batik dye and microwave

Learn multicoloured yarn with speckles and dots

If you love colour play in your yarns, the speckles dyeing technique is perfect for this. Speckles, also known as dots, are a way to combine a lot of colours for a unique look that gives your yarn both life and character. For speckles, using a pipette is especially beneficial as you can more easily control how the different speckles are placed in the yarn.

Read the full guide: Hand-dyeing multicoloured yarn with speckles and dots

Learn solid yarn dyeing by hand

If you want to colour yarn to create a nice solid look in your favourite colour, check out through-dyeing. The dyeing technique is beautiful when used on undyed yarn, but if you want to bring a new depth to your batik dyeing, you can easily experiment with hand-dyeing yarn that already has color.

Read the full guide: Hand dyeing solid dyed yarn

See how it was done when we invited some of our creative friends over to Rito for a fun evening of yarn dyeing: