Dyed Silk Noil/Alpaca Yarn

The second sample of silk noil in my pack was labeled “Clean Noil.”

I decided to dye this. At first I tried the exhaust dyestock from the Easter egg dyes, but though the water was bright with color, the blue in particular refused to impart any of it to the fiber. So I sprinkled each batch with dye powder and this is what I ended up with:









I had first thought to spin it as is, but the fiber length was less than ¼ inch, so I blended it with handfuls of alpaca fleece.

The yarn:

2-ply measures 10 WPI after washing and abusing. Unfortunately the green noils look washed out in these images. The yarn spoke to me of knitting, so here is a swatch, front (left) and back which I also liked (right). So reverse stockinette is a possibility.

The hand is a bit harsher than I like, but I’m musing the possibilities. I don’t mind this kind of yarn for outer wear. And since I still have 2 large handfuls of the dyed noil to do something with, I guess I’ll reach a decision eventually.

Related Posts:
Mulberry Silk Noil - handcarding & spinning
Spinning Tussah Silk Noil - scouring & spinning
Silk Fiber Fusion - using dyed silk noils