don't wanna dream if it won't come true

The economy is bad. Waste not, want not, right? What happens when you want to a) support your local yarn store and b) need to use up a spare bottle of hair dye? A step-by-step guide.

Step 1: Shopping. I bought one hank of Plymouth Yarn's "Dye For Me"...a lovely alpaca/wool/nylon fingering weight yarn. I had planned on buying sock yarn from Skacel (also undyed, but similar to your average commercial sock yarn in composition) but then I saw this. I love Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine, and although this is spun a little differently, it is, compositionally, very similar...and with 477 yards per skein, I have some flexibility as to what I want to make.

Step 1.5: Continue shopping. I stopped at the grocery on the way home, and much to my delight they sell a "Value Vinegar" for only 56 cents! I don't know if you can see the price tag, but I think that is the single cheapest item I have ever purchased at a grocery store. Score! Probably not the best vinegar for cooking...but for my purposes it'll do just fine.

Step 2: Frighten your friends and roommate. I soaked the yarn in a 25% vinegar solution overnight. I had also happened to make bread dough earlier in the evening and was waiting for it to rise...so pictured above are the two of the most disgusting looking tupperware containers I could possibly have in my kitchen. They also smelled a little: yeast + vinegar = a bad combination. I guess it could have been worse; the weather was nice, I opened the windows and we survived.

Step 3: A dream deferred. I had purchased this pink hair dye in hopes of getting a few pink streaks put in...but alas, when you work at a job with dress code rules (meaning "no unnatural hair colors"), sometimes you have to postpone your dreams. Which means: when I give my 2-week notice, I'm scheduling myself for a hair appointment pronto. But for now, why waste that pink hair dye? I slathered it all over my new yarn and microwaved it! What was the worst that could happen?

Step 5: What have you learned? I have to say I was disappointed with the result (at first). I decided to rinse the yarn (based on directions from the dye bottle), and I'm glad I did...nearly ALL the color came out! I thought heat-setting it for 5 minutes in the microwave would make the yarn absorb a lot more color. I rinsed and rinsed and rinsed...and came away with a petal-pink, feminine, fluffy alpaca that is rapidly gaining my affection. Now I have to admire it every time I walk past, and I'm already mulling over its ideal application. I guess I'm not really a candidate for beauty school, but knitting I've SO got down.