So, I dyed my little mini alpaca batt yesterday. It’s brighter than I expected. I thought the brown of the fiber would tone it down more than it did. Good to know. It’s a very earthy, brightish sort of moss green. Extremely earthy. It’s interesting. I tried lighter and darker shades of a similar green, and there is some variation to the color. I think it would have been more distinct if I had more fiber in there. A thicker roving or top would have held the dye in place better. But with this green and brown, the lighter spots look a little sickly. Once it’s spun, it’ll be fine. During the dyeing, I thought for sure I was getting a repeat of my silk experience (a big mess with distinct stripes where I poured the dye), but as I watched, it diffused and spread.

Neither of the two pictures I took are color accurate, but I’ll show them both and if you imagine something in between, you’ll probably be close. The darker one is closer.

So, I have some tan alpaca top I could try. I’m not sure if I should add a little black to the dye, or a little red to tone it down. Or if I’ll just go for purples, because that is of interest, too. Maybe I’ll do both. What I want to dye is my camel, mainly because I’m so anxious to spin it, but I don’t want impatience to ruin it, either. It’s such beautiful stuff.

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