FOs, 50% off and dyeing

 I finally used some more of my hand-dyed yarn!

I used about half of the gradient purple/teal yarn on a knitted cat toy and I wanted to use up the last half skein of Noro from my stash so I crocheted up a couple more toys with it. I ran out on the second so I finished it off with some of my hand-dyed yarn (the one with the bright green). Felting was a pain. My washer is a top-loader, but it's less than a year old so apparently much more gentle than my old machine. lol I ran these through 3 times in hot water, then popped them each in mason jars with a bit of dish soap and shook away, alternating with cold rinses. I finally got tired of shaking and decided they were felted enough. The cats won't mind. =^..^=

Michaels had a 50% off coupon this weekend. I went shopping...

I sold my kitchen table and chairs earlier in the day and had cash in hand. First, I hit Michaels and picked up a set of Clover interchangeable circular needles. I've been thinking about sorting through and purging some of my knitting needles. Now, I have to! lol Well, I don't have to, but I'm going to now that I have an interchangeable set. =) I have too many straight needles leftover from my early knitting days, back when I actually used straights. I can't even remember the last time I used a straight needle for anything. I don't even really use the dpns anymore, opting instead for circs in nearly every situation. I prefer wooden needles, so most of my metal ones should go to someone who will use them. That's a good project for these hot days! I'd printed two coupons for Michaels so I took the 2nd to Jo Ann's and finally picked up the loom kit I've been wanting for a long time. I have linen yarn in my stash purchased with the intent of knitting dish towels for my kitchen. Now, I'm thinking of weaving some up instead. =)

I did tackle that ball of strawberry yarn in the pic. I found it in the clearance bin and hadn't yet tried dyeing superwash yet. I hanked this and gave it a soak, then put it in a shallow dish with a little water and mixed up a strong blue Kool-Aid (2 packets mixed berry and about 1/2 c water) and squirted across the skein. After nuking to set, I mixed up a weaker solution (1 packet mixed berry) and squirted some of that around after shifting the skeins around a bit.

Not sure exactly what I'll use this for, but nice that it's washable! =)