i'm lovin it

back in september of 2010-i joined a criminal minds mystery kerchief knit along. wow- that was a mouthful to say-or rather read. anyway, weekly clues were given along with a funny story involving the characters of criminal minds- a t.v. show i don't even watch-ha! i don't have t.v. but hubby streamed a few for me so i could at least understand the story a bit and see the characters.
i used a knit picks yarn -merino and silk blend which i kettle dyed a soft brick red. this kerchief or rather mini shawl was too fun to knit- i didn't know what the shawl was going to look like- it was amazing to watch it unfold from my needles. each week was a new and different lace pattern. what a great way to try new lace patterns. i loved knitting it and love the finished shawlette.
i didn't like my dye job though. i like semi-solid dye jobs- but this wasn't going to cut it. the parts that didn't take the dye as well were a horrid beige color. you can't tell by the photo -but take my word for it-it was ugly!!!! here's the shawl after binding off- before blocking.

i wanted to over-dye the shawl but was worried that simmering in a dye bath would felt all my precious efforts. advice from friend and master dyer sara.....she suggested i do it in the oven! yes, another oven post...but not as disgusting as my last oven post, i promise! i soaked the shawl in warm water.

while the yarn was soaking i preheated the oven to 250 degrees. after soaking for about thirty minutes i put it in a light dilution of the same color. don't ask me for details as i just winged it and hoped for the best.

i didn't want to contaminate my oven so i put the dye and shawl in an enamel pot. gee- now the whole world knows i need to clean my oven!!! i left it there all afternoon- several hours. then turned the oven off and let it cool completely before taking out. next came blocking time. i never blocked this way before- with the item folded. but that's what the directions said to do- i'm a sucker for directions-----most of the time.

i hid the blocking board from the cats-behind closed doors mind you. ah, they love napping and or scratching on a nicely blocked piece of wooly fabric- grrrr!!!! don't get me started. here's the end result. can you say "i'm lovin it?" and i'm not talking mcdonalds here!!!

a bit of a close up for ya! the color is more like the top photo-at least on my monitor it is.

yes, i still have a few loose ends to weave in-but yes, i finally finished it-hooray for me! stay tuned for more finished objects!!!