We Tried It! Kool-Aid Speckles Edition

Speckles! They are all the rage in yarn these days, and we were super excited when we came across a video on using Kool-Aid to dye your own! Twisted Team Member Dawn continues falling down the dye rabbit hole and decided to try it re-using her not-quite-what-she-wanted skein post her first attempt at solar dyeing. Win-win!

GATHER YOUR MATERIALS

If you caught our Kool-Aid dyeing post, this is going to be very familiar. You are going to need the following:

• Kool-Aid. We stuck with the outrageously pink Cherry flavor/color, which is notorious for producing vibrant results.
• Yarn. Again, this is Knitted Wit Victory Sock which is a superwash and nylon blend. You can use any weight you want but we totally recommend superwash as the main fiber for ease of results. Also! This should be in a hank or circle and not a ball. This will make sure your speckles are evenly distributed
• A rimmed sheet pan or plastic wrap - or both!
• A steamer basket and pot.

WHERE TO START

• You are going to begin by soaking your yarn in water. This is going to make sure your speckles soak in! Twenty minutes or so is all the longer you need.
• While the yarn is soaking, you can either get out your pan or lay down your plastic wrap. Basically, you want to use something that will wash easily (the pan) or protect the surface you are working on (the plastic).
• Squeeze out the excess water and lay your yarn on your work surface. 
• With dry fingers or a tea strainer, you can distribute the Kool-Aid powder as heavily or lightly as your heart desires. Now is the time to get creative and be bold!
• If you want speckles on all sides, you are going to have to carefully turn and flip your yarn at least once. 

SET THE DYE

• In one of the videos we saw, they used a microwave to heat the yarn and set the dye. We were not that brave!
• Get your steamer basket set up on your stovetop. Once it is ready you are going to need to carefully place your yarn in the basket and let it sit for at least 20 minutes.
• Time is your friend in this process! We left our yarn to cool still in the basket for maximum heat effect.

RINSE AND DRY

The final step of the process is rinsing the yarn. Again, since Kool-Aid has other things in it like flavoring, we decided to use some wool wash to get rid of that stuff, too. (Cherry-colored yarn is one thing cherry-scented yarn... that's another.) Finally, find a place to dry your yarn where you can ogle your amazing results!

BOTTOM LINE

Kool-Aid dyeing is just straight-up fun. And satisfying! It's such a great way to be creative and make something uniquely your own, plus it's safe for kids! We can not recommend it enough.