Name: Marion

Message: My guild showed me how to dye wool by simmering in white vinegar then putting in a pan of water and sprinkling dye powder on top of the water and covering with foil to form steam which activated the dye. The result was varigated wool. I want to buy the Lanaset dye to do this. Please advise which ones and how much. Thank you.

You can buy Lanaset dyes in some knitting shops, or by mail order from several good dye suppliers. See my blog entry, "Who sells Lanaset dyes?". Paradise Fibers and PRO Chemical & Dye sell a four-color sampler kit which is ideal for beginners.

There will be some instructions that come with the dyes. You can also look at ProChem's instructions for "Rainbow Dyeing using Sabraset/Lanaset Dyes", and at Maiwa's Lanaset-Telana Datasheet [PDF]. Books with instructions for using Lanaset dye include Deb Menz's Color In Spinning, Dagmar Klos's Dyer's Companion, Lynne Vogel's The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook: Dyeing, Painting, Spinning, Designing, Knitting, and Karren Brito's Shibori: Creating Color And Texture on Silk. 

Lanaset dye is the most washfast of all wool dyes, when heat-set for the full recommended period of time, either by immersing the wool and the dye in simmering water for an hour or so, or by steaming the wool over boiling water in a steamer for twenty minutes or so. Unlike other dyes used for wool, it is washfast even in hot water.

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