DIY RYA Rug Kits
I am often asked if I could sell yarns for those who would like to design their own rya, rather than following a specific pattern. In the past I have done this a few times, and it can be difficult to match colours to an exact shade. This used to be easier when I used chemical dyes, because there are specific formulas to create every pantone shade.
Working with natural plants colours does not follow any formula. The amazing and varied shades of nature depend largely on the plant itself, the weather, the seasons, the growing conditions and the ability of the dyer to extract the colour or dye pigments from the plant. I am often surprised to find what is waiting for me in my dye vats. A slight change vat temperature, the pH of the water, the acidity of the dye bath, the length of time the yarn was in the vat and the wool or fibre that I am dyeing. Even with sheep wool or cotton, the fibres are never the same, so how the yarns react to the dye is a bit of magic and alchemy.
These DIY Rya kits will be different every time. When I pass these nature’s colours to you the creativity passes on to you to stitch your own one-of-a-kind Rya.
I hand dye yarns almost daily on a continual basis. These DIY RYA kits will feature the yarns that I have recently dyed. The kits will be of varied sizes depending on the Rya rug backings that I have on hand.
I try to use mostly organic wool, all naturally plant dyed. (sometimes there may be some plant dyed superwash wool added to the kit. Sometimes there may also be some plant dyed cotton or linen yarns. When I create rya rugs, I like to add a bit of texture to the rug.
Some of the rya backings have been woven at different setts (the spacing between the knots). Where the spacing is tight, it is better to use a finer weight of wool such as a 4 ply or sock weight. Mostly the backings use worsted weight or DK weight yarns.
Some rya kits will work best when you use 3 strands per knot or 4. This will be identified in the kit.
All skeins will be 20 grams each. Sufficient yarn will be supplied in the kit, if the correct length of pile has been used. Therefore it is best to use the correct rya stick. I try to add about 20 % extra wool in each kit.
Each kit will have different plant dyed colours – some colours are seasonal – and the backing sizes and prices will vary with each kit.
Categories: Rya Rugs