handmade by stefanie

Over the weekend, I decided to put some of our expired coffee to good use overdyeing some of my handspun yarn. After doing a little research* into the specifics of coffee dyeing, I combined this reconnaissance with my general dye knowledge from the 4 years I was a dyer with Lorna's Laces and dove headfirst into the Great Experiment. First, I added extra ties on the skeins to keep them neat and tidy during the dye process, then soaked them in a tub of tepid water and vinegar for 30 minutes.  While the skeins were soaking, I prepared my dye. I'd been collecting small quantities of coffee beans over the last several months; my husband works at a local coffee roaster, so we always have an overabundance of coffee beans in the house. Since they are no longer considered "brew-worthy" a few weeks after their roast date, I decided to use them for dyestuffs before sending them to their ultimate resting place, the compost heap.  I can't say I was terribly scienti...

I dedicated most of this weekend to working on my Destash Dolman , only to realize that I'd miscalculated the amount of yarn I needed when substituting. Oops! On the plus side, it fit very well when I tried it on, so I know I'll be pleased with it when it's completed...whenever that is! The problem is, the yarn I ran out of ( Anzula Squishy in Clay) is apparently not one that is sold in many shops. Also, it's $36; kind of a bummer to drop that kind of cash on a skein of yarn from which you'll only use about 100 yards! Usually in this type of situation, I can track down a skein in someone's Ravelry stash that they're willing to sell, but no such luck. Ah, well, these things happen. I'll put this project on hibernation for a bit and concentrate on other things....like swatching for my next sweater, the Rocky Coast Cardigan ! I thought I'd share a few photos from the barista throwdown at Metropolis that I mentioned last week. In this one, you ca...