A Biochemist's Knitting Perspective
The 2026 Spring Mini Skein Mini Series starts tonight! Each night this week at 8:30 PM Eastern Time there will be a new yarn dyeing video. I'll see you in the live chat room as the videos premiere!
All of the 2026 SMSMS Yarn is ready to ship! (There will be a couple dyed to order listings that get released this week for some of the bonus colorways and maybe sock blanks.)
I cannot believe the 2025 Spring Mini Skein Mini Series starts tonight, Monday 6/2/25. Each night this week at 8:30 PM Eastern Time there will be a new video premiere on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube channel featuring the dyeing of different miniskein sets. I will be in the live chat during the premieres to answer questions, react to the videos, and just hang out.
Here are some more details for each of the videos:
SMSMS Night 1 - 60 minutes long
SMSMS Night 2 - 48 minutes long
SMSMS Night 3 - 39 minutes long
SMSMS Night 4 - 42 minutes long
SMSMS Bonus Full Skein - 40 to 50 minutes long (Full length is TBD, I'm almost done editing)
SMSMS Vlog - Full length TBD
Once the premiers are over, the video will be available to watch on demand (like a regular YouTube video.) You can find all of the SMSMS videos and shorts in the following playlist as they are published.
All of the SMSMS yarn preorders are now ready-to-ship. I still have some miniskein sets, yarn mops, neon rainbow yarn mops, sock blanks, and bonus full skeins available. I have not updated the listings to let you pick your yarn by the episode number, but if you're hoping for yarn from a particular night I can check and see what yarn bases I have available. Please reach out on Etsy with any questions.
I didn't just dye miniskein sets in this year's series, I also dyed sock blanks in each video and chat a lot about the pros and cons of a miniskein set versus a sock blank for similar types of colorways.
I plan (at some point) to bring all of the miniskein and sock blank footage into a longer video where I can talk about dyeing yarn to get the gradient or fade that you want. This will be mostly pros and cons of miniskeins vs sock blanks for smaller projects. You can still dye up sock blanks for larger skeins, but if you're making a sweater or something that needs a lot more yardage it won't all fit on one blank.
I have a few sock blanks left that are ready to ship! (If you want me to unravel the blank for you, please allow a few extra business days.)
If you join to become a channel member on YouTube for $0.99/month you can get access to these fun ChemKnits emotes to use in comments and the live chat. I really wish I could add these emotes as an option here on Patreon, but unfortunately there is not integration between the two platforms. If you're going to pick one platform over the other, I recommend sticking to Patreon. Here is an older post talking about the differences between the two platforms.
I am pleased to share that I just opened up preorders for the 2024 Summer Mini Skein Mini Series! This annual event will have multiple yarn dyeing videos that are published nightly starting Monday July 8, 2024. You will watch me dye mulitple different sets of miniskeins on a variety of yarn bases, plus there will be some bonus dyeing videos, too.
There are multiple different yarn bases to choose from your your miniskein set. Each set of 5 - 20 g miniskeins will be dyed within one video. All sets will arrive wrapped and labeled with the date and episode number of the video so you know when you can watch the dyeing. Each yarn set also comes with mulitple fun extras, and the theme of the packaging this year is adorbable and ties into the theme for this year. (The theme isn't based around the colors, but more around the techniques I plan to feature.)
You can see all of the Summer Mini Skein Mini Series options in the 2024 SMSMS ChemKnits Creations Section.
You can add more yarn to your miniskein set! At this time these add on options are only available to customers who purchase a miniskein set. All extra skeins come wrapped with a progress keeper and will be labeled with the date they're featured in a video. There are three different categories of Add ons this year:
Add on Full Skein - These 100 g skeins of yarn are dyed as a bonus colowray for the series, and are dyed in their own dedicated video. All three bases will be dyed the same colorway, although there may be some dye lot variation. The yarn bases include:
100 g Sock 80/20 2-ply (80% superwash fine highland wool / 20% polyamide)
100 g Superwash DK 8-ply (100% Superwash Merino)
100 g SW Worsted HT 3-ply (100% Superwash Merino)
Add on Sock Blanks - I will dye some sock blanks in the miniskein videos themselves, but I may also do a sock blank stand alone video. There will be a variety of colors within blanks of even one base. I will do my best to send you a sock blank featured on a different night from your miniskein set, but this may not be possible. The yarn bases include:
Double stranded 75/25 Sock Blank (75% Superwash Merino Wool / 25% Nylon)
Double Stranded 80/20 Sock Blank (80% superwash fine highland wool / 20% polyamide)
Single stranded 75/25 Sock Blank (75% Superwash Merino Wool / 25% Nylon)
Single Stranded Merino/Silk Sock Blank (80% Superwash Merino / 20% Silk)
Add on "Yarn Mop" - this will be a 100 g skein of yarn dyed in one of the miniskein dyeing or bonus dyeing videos. This might be a prototype, bonus colorway, leave no dye behind, or more classic "yarn mop" skein. I will do my best to send you a yarn mop /bonus skein featured on a different night from your miniskein set, but this may not be possible.
Yarn Bases: Pick between Sock, DK, or Worsted Weights. There will be some variation in the base itself, but all yarn will be superwash Merino based with up to 30% nylon.
I will ship out the 2024 SMSMS Yarn in the middle of June 2024. The videos begin on July 8, 2024. Once the videos are public, you can find them in the following YouTube Playlist: https://tinyurl.com/2024-SMSMS
I intend to dye more yarn than I orginally list in the 2024 SMSMS preorders. If the yarn base for a SMSMS yarn set sells out, please reach out to me on Etsy and let me know. I will order more yarn if I can and do a restock once I have more of that yarn base on hand.
I also typically hold back some inventory until I've shipped out all of the preorders, so there is usually a restock closer to the shipping dates.
No. Due to the volume of orders, I cannot combine shipping on multiple orders. However, if you have already purchased a mini skein set in one order, you can place an order for add-ons in a separate order. (You do not have to order a second mini skein set unless you want to!)
I'm not announcing the loose theme I have for this year, as the theme has more to do with part of the techniques and dyeing process (and the packaging for the yarn) than it does the actual colors. Expect some sets composed of tonals and others that are more variegated. There should be a lot of variety!
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Welcome to the 2022 Spring Mini Skein Mini Series! The first episode premieres at 8:30 PM Eastern time tonight on YouTube, Monday May 23, 2022.
Can I still get some yarn?
Yes! There are a couple 2022 SMSMS yarn sets, add on skeins, and double stranded sock blanks remaining in the ChemKnits Creations Etsy Shop.
I will share more details the theme and answer any questions in a YouTube Livestream at 1:30 PM Eastern time today.
Yarn sets will ship at the end of April 2022.
The 2022 Spring Mini Skein Mini Series will start on Monday May 23, 2022 at 8:30 PM Eastern Time on the ChemKnits Tutorials YouTube Channel.
You can see all of the videos as they are published on the following playlist: https://tinyurl.com/2022SMSMS
There are 7 yarn base options for the 2022 SMSMS, and the videos will feature a lot of side by side comparisons. If the base you wanted has sold out, message me to check if I have more! I am still dyeing more yarn, and will add more listings based on the stock I have on hand.
The most limited yarn bases are the "Sparkle Sock" and "Merino Silk Sock." I plan to dye more of both this week with yarn I already have. I am also placing a new yarn order tonight - I would never list a preorder on a base that I do physically have, but there is a chance that I can release more.
Please let me know if you have any questions. I'm super excited to talk more about the series! The colors are stunning and I want to keep a set in every colorway and every base, I'm truly going to struggle to pick one.
