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The Joys of Stirring the Pot
The Yarn Lover's Guide to Hand Dyeing
Review by Linda Cortright
Wild Fibers Magazine Fall 2007

I don’t know if it was a concert pianist with stage fright or a college quarterback with a pulled hamstring who gave us the adage “Those can do. Those can’t teach.” But as I read Linda La Belle’s new book The Yarn Lover’s Guide to Hand Dyeing, it was eminently clear to me that she can do both.

Happily ensconced at the Yarn Tree — her uber hip store and studio in Brooklyn, New York, La Belle conducts all manner of classes in knitting, weaving, spinning, dyeing, felting and papermaking now that she isn’t spending as much time at her "other" job as a professional costume designer, whose creations have taken her to the stage lights of Paris. (Hmmm … when was the last time M. Butterfly wore a boucle shrug?)

I am always a bit wary of books that purport to be guides. Inevitably they seem to assume a certain level of skill that I don’t possess. Even if they claim to be for "beginners," I am usually left with a big ol' question mark stuck to my forehead before the end of the first chapter. (I attempted to learn how to play bridge using the best bridge manual ever written — it felt like learning to play Go Fish in Chinese.)

Thankfully, La Belle assumes nothing, which is exactly what a good teacher should do. Every question one can conjure regarding equipment, prep work, safety precautions, dye baths, dye brands — even the type of plastic gloves to wear — is covered. Eureka! This is someone who truly understands the art of teaching. You can’t teach someone talent, but you can give someone the right tools to help them discover their own.

For the novice, dyeing can be an intimidating process. Suppose that gorgeous shade of aubergine turns a pricey skein of baby alpaca into a mustard mess. It can happen, but not if you read La Belle's directions. The Yarn Lover's Guide to Hand Dyeing is aimed not only at getting you comfortable using a wide range of brand name dyes (for example, Procion, Jacquard, Kiton and Ashford), but the knitting patterns — which for my taste are as uber hip as her store — feature a combination of elegant cables (the leg warmers are superior) and simple lace knits that further demonstrate La Belle's creative talents.

By La Belle's own admission, however, the most delightful part of compiling the book was a series of interviews she conducted with other dyers around the country. Karen Selk of Treenway Silks (one of the great dye masters) lives on Salt Spring Island in British Columbia. La Belle had been led to believe that the island had the perfect water for dyeing. After interviewing Selk, and some of the dyers on her staff, La Belle learned that the water is actually softer on some parts of the island than on others, leading her to conclude that "… in the end, it is not the water on Salt Spring, but the dyers who are perfect!"

La Belle's good friend Takako Ueki, who is a wizard at creating unusual yarns and owns HABU Textiles in New York, referred La Belle to Darlene Hayes of Hand Jive Knits. Hayes, a natural dyer who lives in Davis, California, has the luxury of being able to dye year-round right in her own back yard. La Belle specifically wanted a project that would use natural materials available to anyone, so Hayes chose eucalyptus (which you can order from the florist – just specify the right kind).

Although the book is exactly as advertised — the yarn lover's guide to hand dyeing — and is written by a teacher who knows how to teach, I confess I was most taken by La Belle's devotion to Gerald, her UPS man. Every year La Belle knits him a gift and once she decided to make something that would keep his hands warm but his fingers free. With that in mind, La Belle dyed and designed "Gerald's Half Mitts," which are the perfect solution for anyone who wants to keep their hands warm but still needs to say "Sign here, please." And my guess is that Gerald probably wouldn't object if those aubergine mitts did turn a shade of nasty yellow - those brown outfits go with everything!

The Yarn Lover's Guide to Hand Dyeing