Rainbow Roundup!

To show my support for Pride Month, I decided to dye up a bunch of Rainbows and make a donation to the Trevor Project, an organization that provides crisis intervention to LGBTQ youth.  Here are some of the stunning colorways I created in June:

In the two June #ChemKnitsDyeAlong livestreams, I talked a lot about Rainbows mean to me personally. The light and the hope that they can represent.  I picked a picture that had a lot of options.  I will finish up the recap from the dye alongs later this week.  If you want to be featured in the recap, share your projects on Instagram with #ChemKnitsDyeAlong or as a comment on the Facebook thread.  Whether you wanted to take a literal view of this scene, or focus on the rainbow itself, I always love seeing what you create!

A cartoonish version of the Dye Along Photo

A "green" rainbow - dyeing both sides of the blank

Rainbow roving!

All of the ChemKnits Dye Along livestreams and recaps are in the following Playlist (the June Livestreams are #19 & 20)

I was so excited to finally dye some rainbows with commercial acid dyes.  This stunning speckled gradient was created with a commercial double stranded sock blank that I unraveled for a matched 50 g pair.  What would you create out of this yarn? 

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A post shared by ChemKnits (@chemknits) on Jul 6, 2019 at 6:09am PDT

During the livestream, I kept an extra presoaked skein of yarn off to the side to use as a dye mop.  Whenever I had dye powder on my gloves from speckling and wanted to swap colors, first I would wipe off the extra dye on the yarn before washing the gloves.  This created a random rainbow yarn that is unique and full of fun.  I think part of the beauty comes in because my focus is elsewhere when I'm creating these mops to leave no dye behind. 

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What is a yarn mop? 🧹 An extra skein I use to wipe dye powder off my gloves, to soak up extra dye in a pan, or to wipe down a counter. 🧶🎨 These one of a kind colorways end up being some of the most beautiful I ever create and it is an excellent way to #LeaveNoDyeBehind. 🥰 This rainbow yarn was born in the second part of the June #ChemKnitsDyeAlong. 🌈 The livestream replays are available now and a recap of the yarns we all dyed for the dye along will come out in early July. . . . #rainbowyarn #dyeyarn #chemknitstutorials #youtube #dyealong #indiedyer #dyestagram #yarnmop #leftoverdye #speckledyarn #rainbow #rainbow🌈 #yarn #yarnlover #yarnstagram

A post shared by ChemKnits (@chemknits) on Jun 28, 2019 at 9:15am PDT

The following video won't be out into August, but if I'm sharing some of my favorite rainbow yarns... this one HAS to be on the list.  A long time ago, in a livestream, I sprayed a sock blank with different colors and then showed how it unraveled for amazing alternating speckles.  I finally created a stand alone video, and how stunning is this deep rainbow?  I have a feeling I will be recreating this colorway more in the future. 

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Each time I dye a gradient of rainbow speckles, I get very excited. 🌈💖🌈 This skein took my breath away. The dark purple-black speckles alternate with the rainbow colors for a new twist on a ChemKnits Favorite. Even with an automated skeinwinder I had to wind this one out by hand to see the gradient in full force. What would you create with this set? The dyeing video 🎥 won't come out until late August, but this stunning set of 50 g skeins is currently available in the #ChemKnitsCreations #Etsy store! (See link in profile) There is only one right now, but I have a feeling that I will revisit this colorway in the future. Created with @knit_picks sock blank 🧶 and @wiltoncakes color mist sprays. 🧁 #sneakpeak #tutorial #rainbow #rainbowyarn #yarnstagram #yarnie #diy #sockyarn #foodcoloring #handdyedyarn #indiedyer #fiberartist

A post shared by ChemKnits (@chemknits) on Jun 7, 2019 at 7:09am PDT

In addition to the dye along, I played with all 40 colors of Jacquard Acid dyes in a couple of different ways.  I like to do crude swatches with new dyes to get a sense of relative intensity and hue between the colors.  There are much more accurate ways to do this, but this is a quick and dirty way to get a quick feel for all of the colors in the collection. 

The swatching is useful (and the final yarns are gorgeous!), but the real winner was the Leave No Dye Behind take on this project.  I used the seals from all of the containers on a single skein of yarn.  This rainbow yarn has all 40 colors on it! 

I could dye rainbows all day every day.  I hope that you enjoyed this look at some of my favorites from June 2019!