From this to this

Usually at least once a fortnight I have a dyeing day. I love dyeing my own colours and with the method I use it isn’t an exact science, which makes each dyebath different and I can never repeat exact colourways. I like dyeing this way as I feel it makes each piece I weave unique. The only exception to this is when I dye solid colours.

This is how I start out… cones of white yarn that I then wind into hanks, a warp or weft. The warp is the longway threads on a loom and the weft is the threads that go across it. How I dye the yarn determines the end effect of the piece of weaving.

Dyeing is so exciting, because of the way I dye I can never be really sure how it is going to turn out, but after many years of doing this its not often I have a failure. I’m also fortunate that I have very good colour sense and can just tell what colours will work well together. So after dyeing, washing and drying, I end up with this pile of beautifully coloured yarn and depending how much work I have on, this can be up to 10 different colourways I have dyed.

So after all the dyeing is completed its time to weave up the yarn. And this is the final result. It is extra work to dye my own yarn, but important to me that what I weave is unique and the colours in my weaving is what I am known for.