Bleeding dye

[redheadrachel]

Hey everyone! I'm knitting up some BEEEEEEAUTIFUL crimson Fly Dyed Lace Wing Sock yarn... and my hands are turning SO red from it! Like, there are very very distinct red lines from the way I wrap the yarn around my hand.

So I don't want to recipient's feet to turn completely red when she wears them... what can I do? I've heard various remedies but have heard really varied responses... any ideas on what worked for you?

[fibrenut]

Well, first things first, I would get some "gloves in a bottle" hand lotion so that you can just rinse off that pesky stuff when you knit with it. But as for the recipients feet thing? I would rinse those out with some vinegar water (to set the dye) and block them n dry em.

[brittyknits]

And then the next thing I would do, is send the company an e-mail. $18 and they can't "fix" the dye themselves?! I don't think so. To sell any kind of yarn, especially sock, which is worn on feet which often sweat, and have it bleed AS YOU WORK WITH IT!-- we're not even talking about washing it, yet!-- is just a shoddy product. Okay, I'm through, and going to get that 2nd cup of coffee now .

[jeanius80]

Rachel- after you have finished knitting (if you've started) Soak the socks in a vinegar (or citric acid) and water solution. Gently squeeze out most of the water, then wrap in saran wrap or place in a microwave safe bowl. Zap it for a minute. Rinse it in warm water. squeeze it again, and zap it again. Rinse. This should remove the excess dye. Your yarn has probably been set properly. Red dyes have larger particles, and your yarn is losing excess dye. This is common with red colors, and is also the reason red hair dye fades faster then most other colors

[angoravalley]

Hi!
I was notified this message was over here and joined just so I could answer.
I'm Pat Fly, the one who dyed the crimson yarn.
First off, you should ALWAYS, ALWAYS notify the dyer if you are having problems like this. This is something we need to know.
I also like to have the dye lot number, too, so I can tell when the yarn was dyed.
I would have replaced it right away if I had been told/emailed.
It's true, reds are notorious for not wanting to have the water come clear when you're rinsing them.
Vinegar or citric acid is not going to help set it. I already set the yarn with citric acid.
It must still has extra dye in it.
I watch for this when I'm rewinding the skeins to make sure there is no excess dye left.
It could be that your hands are a bit sweaty when you're knitting.
It could be the red. I've recently been testing 3 different red dyes. (another reason why I like to know the dye lot number).

It should be returned to me, but if you don't want to start over, it WILL release the rest of the dye in the first cold water wash you do in the washing machine.
You needn't worry about your recipient if you wash the socks first.

Please email me here or privately if you have any other questions.
I may not answer right away because I'm leaving for Stitches West tomorrow early morning (I'm so excited! ) but I will answer.

Thank you

Pat

[Abbily]

Wow, now *that's* service!

[lelvsdgs]

Wow, now *that's* service!

Absolutely!!!

[Chel]

"I will hunt you down and fix your yarn!"

HA! That is great service, and great advice. I have been eyeing some of your yarn and this makes me more inclined to try it out!!!

[Jan in CA]

Every time I see this thread I read it as Bleeding EYE!

[redheadrachel]

Just to give everyone an update: I did three handwashings of the first red sock, and tons of red dye still came out. I washed it in the washing machine and then did another hand wash, and tons of red dye still came out. I did a vinegar soak and two one-minute tries in the microwave, and tons of red dye still came out.

:( I really don't think I can give the girl these socks... I don't want her first experience with hand-knit socks to be bad! I would return the yarn if I hadn't already knit up a whole sock with it... I just kind of don't know what to do now. And I am leaving on the trip (on which I will give the three awesome girls their theoretically lovely socks) in three weeks from yesterday. So I am still within that time that I could order more, but it'd have to be soon. I have Evergreen Flydyed yarn that I could use, but red is her favorite color and what if the Evergreen bleeds, too, anyhow? And I think I only have enough for an entire pair of Monkey socks in one other sock yarn, that I definitely didn't want to use for this. The rest are itty bitty KP individual balls. I don't have the Fly dyed lady's e-mail but I sent her a KH PM and am waiting a reply... any other advice?