DIY Life

When I was a youngster, I remember days where I was bored beyond measure. I would listen to the click-clack of my Mother's knitting needles as she would tell me stories of her youth in Germany, while I would unravel the ball of yarn for her.

Most kids won't sit long enough to help with mundane tasks, but I bet you could get yours to sit still on a rainy day if you ask them to help you dye yarn with food coloring. Suse of Pea Soup has a tutorial showing off her gorgeous pictures of yarn that she dyed with the help of her 8 year old son.

You'll need a box of food colors, a microwave-safe bowl, the child(ren), wool yarn, and vinegar, which helps set the dye. Adult supervision is needed when handling the hot water, so that the kiddos don't burn themselves.

For more help dyeing wool and other fabric, check out how to dye with fruits and vegetables, and how to dye with Kool-Aid.

[via: Whip Up]

I love strawberries, both as a food and as a motif.

Recently, two separate summery strawberry stitching projects were posted over at WhipUp within a couple of days of each other: a pattern and tutorial for felt strawberries from Mr. Monkeysuit, and a felt jam-jar topper with a strawberry applique by Amy at Lucykate Crafts.

Even though they aren't by the same person, they seem like a perfect pair to me! You'll find further suggestions for this adorable project, including links to supplies, after the break.

If you have a project coming up that requires a particular color of dyed wool or silk, look no further than your kitchen. If you have a microwave and a package of unsweetened Kool-Aid, you can dye wool and silk in just a few minutes.

Myrrhmaid takes us through the process of dyeing light colored protein fiber with Kool-Aid. To do this simple project, you'll need microwave safe bowls, such as Pyrex, a colander or salad spinner, a wooden skewer or spoon to stir the wool, a mesh laundry bag to put the dyed wool in when you spin it dry in the wash machine, your favorite color Kool-Aid, and of course, a microwave.

According to Myrrhmaid, the dye is colorfast and will not fade or bleed, even after repeated washings. She says you can also use the Kool-Aid dye technique to dye wool skeins, wool socks, knit or crocheted wool items and even silk. How much more simple could it be?

I love throw pillows, and if I could, I would have my entire love seat, sofa and my bed covered in throw pillows of every shape and size. Unfortunately, I can't do that because my two year old loves to drag things around the house and it would look like a pillow bomb went off in my little house.

If you like pillows just as much as I do, and you have the room in your house for a few hundred throw pillows, Design*Sponge has a wonderful feature on how to make applique pillows. To make two pillows, you need four pieces of different colored wool felt, two 18" square pillow inserts, a sewing machine, an iron, thread, scissors, a computer and a printer.

I don't necessarily think you need to use linen for the pillows. I personally like to cuddle with my pillows, so I would choose a fabric that is a little more soft and fluffy. If you need other inspiration for making throw pillows, say, for a teenager's birthday, check out how to pillow like the pros, courtesy of Debra McDuffee.

Yarn comes in many beautiful colors, weights and textures. Sometimes, you can go to every single craft store and still not find the perfect color that you need. If you are having a difficult time finding the perfect color, you can dye your own with fruit and vegetables.

Fruits and vegetables that stain, such as onion skins, grape juice, and beets make very pretty dye, and yarn dyeing is a fun and easy craft that kids can help with. Lion Brand Yarn has tips and recipes using various fruits and vegetables and wool and cotton yarn. You need stainless steel pots, yarn of course, a timer, tongs to handle the yarn, and of course, a stove. the kids can help with the coloring, but adult supervision is needed around the boiling water.

It is amazing to me how the different yarn produced different color results. I would have loved to see strawberries make the list because I think the color results would be perfect for making baby blankets for a special new baby girl.

We all know that wool is warm, nice to look at and nice to wear. It is not, however, nice to wash. Wool is easy to shrink, easy to let get moldy, and just plain easy to ruin. What is the answer to the wool washing woes?

Tipnut.com has compiled a detailed tip list (imagine that) of how and how not to wash your lovely woollies. With tips ranging from water temperature to how to make sure you get it dry enough to prevent mildew, this list seems not only helpful but fairly extensive.

There are several tips on the best way to wash wool. Squish, don't squeeze or wring. Lukewarm to cool water is best, never hot. Our best household friend here at DIY Life, vinegar, even found its way into the wool friendly tips.

They also tell you what not to do. Did you know that baking soda could ruin wool? I didn't. Never use a hot iron, again, didn't know that and never, ever hang it dry or leave it to soak. From what I gathered these instructions are mostly referring to hand knit items.

Do you our lovely readers have any additional tips and ideas for washing wool? Or do any of you wool clueless reads, like myself, have any other questions? If so please leave your tip or question in the comments.