Naturally Dyed Wool Yarn / 2oz Skeins

100% Natural Colours

Select batches of our Parkland wool yarn are dyed with locally grown or foraged plants, producing colours that are unique to our prairie landscape.

Plants we use and their qualities

Tansy 

Tansy is an invasive species that grows in ditches and along roadsides. It has charming little button-like flowers but spreads quickly, choking out indigenous plants. It is toxic if consumed in large amounts. It produces a bright, clear yellow, and the exhaust bath, the extra dye left after the first skeins have absorbed their share, produces a buttery light yellow. 

The base yellow yarn can also be modified; a quick dip in iron produces either olive or sage green shades, and over dying with indigo results in a bottle or emerald greens, depending on how many times we dip the yarn into the bath.

The exhaust yellow when over dyed with indigo, produces our most popular colour, sea-foam green.

Tansy dyed Skeins:

• Sunglow - Full Strengh
• Butter - Exhaust Bath

Marigold

Marigolds happen to be Edmonton’s official flower, so we have easy access to them. We use French marigolds to achieve the purest colour possible. The resulting shade is a bright, sunny gold, although this year we managed to also produce harvest gold.

The exhaust bath, produces increasingly lighter hues of yellow. When over dyed with indigo, it produces stunning forest green shades.

Coreopsis

We have been using Dyer’s Coreopsis for a couple of years now. We reliably achieved a deep orange. However, we have found that if the dye with fresh or dried flowers, we will get a slightly different shade of orange. The exhaust bath produces peach shades. 

However, when we add a little washing soda to a pail of warm water and leave the coreopsis dyed yarn overnight, we can push the colour to red on the first bath, and coral shades with the exhaust bath.

Coreopsis dyed Skeins:

• Pumpkin - Full Strength 
• Tangerine - 2nd Exhaust Bath
• Peach - 3rd Exhaust Bath

Our Parkland wool yarn is specially designed for weaving blankets, yet it can be used for knitting or crochet projects such as mittens, socks or scarves. It also closely resembles hand spun yarn.

• Dyed skeins are approximately 100 yard lengths allowing you to add more colour options to any project

Skein Specifications

• Approximately 100 yards
• 2 ounce skein
• 2 ply woolen spun
• Recommended sett for weaving is 8 EPI/PPI for twill, but can work at 10 EPI/PPI. For plain weave, 6 EPI/PPI works well depending on the project.
• For knitters, it would be considered a “medium” or “worsted” weight wool
• Kindly note naturally dyed skeins have bloomed, become fuller with the dye process. 

Please note that natural dyes are wash-fast but not light-fast. Direct sun will cause a patina effect, which some people may or may not desire.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us:

info@traceabletextiles.com