See this gorgeous ball of red wool?Well not so long ago it was one of two boring, forgotten, natural coloured balls of wool, in a basket in an op shop.
But not for very much longer.
The very same day that those two balls of boring wool came home with us, they went straight into a bath of lukewarm water and vinegar and were prepared to become gorgeous.
The following day we followed Suse's wonderful tutorial and used food colouring to paint and decorate the forgotten wool.
Suse's tutorial is brilliant and fun and easy and so kid friendly and I highly recommend it. My kids loved painting the wool and watching the effects the different colours made. I loved including them in my wool obsession too.
We ended up with two 50 gram balls, the red above, and the seaweed below.
We will definitely be painting more wool very soon, only next time I think we'll paint bigger amounts as I have no idea what to do with these small little balls. Maybe they'll just sit on the windowsill and be admired.
The very same day that those two balls of boring wool came home with us, they went straight into a bath of lukewarm water and vinegar and were prepared to become gorgeous.
The following day we followed Suse's wonderful tutorial and used food colouring to paint and decorate the forgotten wool.
Suse's tutorial is brilliant and fun and easy and so kid friendly and I highly recommend it. My kids loved painting the wool and watching the effects the different colours made. I loved including them in my wool obsession too. The best part of all was how safe I felt letting them go for it, knowing there were no nasty chemicals involved.
We ended up with two 50 gram balls, the red above, and the seaweed below.Aren't they gorgeous!
We will definitely be painting more wool very soon, only next time I think we'll paint bigger amounts as I have no idea what to do with these small little balls. Maybe they'll just sit on the windowsill and be admired.I hope you have a happy Saturday.
We're off to Bendigo to pick up something very exciting for our family.
Oh WOW! I love the rainbow coloured ball, what a gorgeous idea! Looks like it was a lot of fun too...
ReplyDeleteHolly Shmolly Kate that looks a m a z i n g!
ReplyDeleteHappy Blogtoberfest if I haven't said so already... I am already exhausted... ;)
ahhh, is that what you use ramekins for ;)
ReplyDeletehappy saturday sweet one, enjoy your family day ♥
That looks like so much fun! Off to read how to do it. Enjoy your Saturday and I hope it's nice and sunny for you!
ReplyDeleteOoh, lovely coulours! Looks like fun!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! Love it!
ReplyDelete:) it is fun isn't it. I did this a few years ago and loved it (used Suzes tutorial as well - and I ended up with green hands LOL) I have just signed up to do the dye workshop at Tangled Yarns next month - chemicals here I come! But that is for me and my enjoyment not the kids.
ReplyDeleteDrive safely - maybe you could turn it into something for the dolls.
The colors look wonderful! Perhaps you could save them up and make a blanket out of all different ones when you have a collection. I will definately have to go and have a peek at how to do it, sounds like lots of fun!
ReplyDeleteLots of fun for everyone and the colors turned out great!
ReplyDeleteWhat a cool idea! That would have been so much fun. I am going to keep my eye out for plain wool now. Question - why do you soak it in vinegar first?
ReplyDeletewow the yarn looks amazing.
ReplyDeleteIt also looks like a lot of fun! What is it about painting and making a mess?!
Hope you have a wonderful day, and GO SAINTS !!!
very nice painted wool. I have had a go at it a few times myself, (I just dipped mine, and it also ruined the micorwave!) and it is really satisfying!
ReplyDeletethat looks amazing - I just checked out the tutorial (as I was having trouble believing it would be colourfast...) and will have a new appreciation for boring op shop wool from now on! Hope you all have a happy and exciting day!
ReplyDeleteWe love painting wool here, but I haven't got a microwave so have to pop up to the neighbors to finish it off! We also like dying wool with onion skins, though this take a bit longer and is the results are not quite so bold! Here are some ideas of what to do with a small ball of wool -
ReplyDeletecrochet lip balm holder (pattern is in my head sorry!)
ankle bells -
http://www.minieco.co.uk/homemade-musical-instruments-ankle-bells/
finger weaving - http://www.squidoo.com/fingerknitting (my girls do this in the car on longer trips)
knitted gnomes -
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bevs-top-down-gnome
knitting - with almost instant gratification!
We love painting wool here, but I haven't got a microwave so have to pop up to the neighbors to finish it off! We also like dying wool with onion skins, though this takes a bit longer and the results are not quite so bold! Here are some ideas of what to do with a small ball of wool.
ReplyDeletecrochet lip balm holder (pattern is in my head sorry!)
ankle bells -
http://www.minieco.co.uk/homemade-musical-instruments-ankle-bells/
finger weaving - http://www.squidoo.com/fingerknitting (my girls do this in the car on longer trips)
knitted gnomes -
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bevs-top-down-gnome
knitting - with almost instant gratification!
What a fun thing to do with your girls! And a great way to upcycle some dreary old op shop yarn!
ReplyDeleteHey Kate, wonderful idea. I
ReplyDeletethink they would looks great grouped in a bowl or basket as a decoration just gorgeous.
Thanks for visitng my blog and commenting, always lovely to hear from you. Don't forget to pick up a Nashi in your travels.
Have a great weekend too.
They look fantastic. Sounds like a great activity for the kids. Love the colours in both lots. Look forward to seeing what you do with them next.
ReplyDeleteIs there nothing you mob can't do lol! Love it! So clever and fun. I love the balls just the way they are :) xox
ReplyDeleteThat a wonderful idea and it looks fabulous! I love how the kids have been the ones to paint it :) Kx
ReplyDeleteThey look wonderful Kate. Can't wait to see what you're getting for the family. xx
ReplyDeleteFood dyes - great way to colour boring wool and no nasty chemical residue in your microwave. I'm inspired.
ReplyDeletewhat a transformation - can't wait to see what you knit the girls with these :)
ReplyDeletehave a happy sunday
I love painting wool it's so much fun. Might have to give it ago with my little one.
ReplyDeleteAnother fun way is those small squirty bottles from plastic shops. Put a different colour in each one and let the kids squirt it over. Lots of fun :)
Kate does the food colouring stand up to washing later?? We did some silk dying with food colouring when I was playing around with Furoshikis but I haven't been game to try washing them! The wool looks lovely :-)
ReplyDeleteThis is such a fun thing to do. I would never have thought food colouring would dye wool and make it look so pretty. They are lovely rolled into balls sitting them on the windowsill to look at would be perfect.xo
ReplyDeleteThose colours are so beautiful, I can't believe they're colourfast either...op shop here I come...again!
ReplyDeleteWow Kate that has turned out so well! Can't wait to see what you make from it x
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!
ReplyDeleteWhat about mini knitted Christmas stockings? Or I crocheted a baby blanket for Miss K's dolly!!!
Well, I def won't be doing that with my ric rac! I love it so much, might just pin it up like bunting! So cute to see the girls, too, I'll bring Sibby next time to say hi as well!
ReplyDeleteWow! That's a fab idea. I'll have to check it out and employ my little artists to upcycle some boring old odd balls.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing these great ideas.
Thats a great idea! Cant wait to try it out, thanks for posting it.
ReplyDeleteit looks gorgeous. great project. ps just sent you an email re the bendigo adventure. congrats
ReplyDeleteWow, they look amazing!
ReplyDeleteAmazing!
ReplyDeleteA group of friends and I are meeting this coming week to do this with the children as a holiday toddler craft session. I picked up some wool in the Bendigo backroom for the task. My plan is to then knit each child something from the wool they helped create. Should be wonderful!
ReplyDeleteUse yours in a small Milo vest for the garter section and do the body in a matching solid so you can use it and enjoy it.
Can't wait to see the thing you are picking up, is it what you looked at on the Friday I went past? Very exciting!
You have to knit them up - maybe a small beanie. I love to see how the colour changes turn out when knitted or crocheted or even weaved
ReplyDeleteThey're both absolutely gorgeous. What happens if you wash them? Will the colours fade?
ReplyDeleteI want to try!!!! Amazing job, love it.
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