So, this lace scarf I’ve been knitting.

You are not going to believe this.

I get to the end of my scarf, which was essentially defined by how much yarn I had in the skein of Koigu KPPPM. I look at what’s left of the lovely Koigu yarn I’m using. “Oh, I shall do my knit row, and then cast off,” I think. So close! So exciting!

I do my knit row.

I start casting off.

And realise that I’m not going to have enough yarn to do more than a third of my cast off.

I MEAN SERIOUSLY.

I can’t tink or rip back because it’s lace and I don’t have a lifeline. I’m certainly not going to buy another $14 skein of Koigu just to use less than a yard to bind off. So I need to use a length of another yarn to complete the bind off. Do I have anything of the right weight or colour? No!

Hang on. Wait.

Last March I bought a nice fingering weight superwash yarn in an Irish Cream colour with which to knit some fingerless gloves. The ribbing on tiny tiny needles drove me nuts and the project is in hibernation. I never even opened the skein, because I started the cuffs with a brown yarn instead. So I dig the Irish Cream skein out, cut off a yard, and try to dye it a colour at least somewhat similar. I mixe up some kelly green Wilton’s with a touch of brown to tone it down. It works on white paper brilliantly, and the dyeing process works equally brilliantly. It even has a mottled effect, like the original Koigu has! Once it’s dry, I compare it to the Koigu and see that the brown has been unnecessary, because the yarn I used wasn’t pure white: the result is a bit more olivey than the green of the Koigu colourway, and less variegated than the wet strand had suggested. But it’s certainly close enough to use in a pinch. However, I decide to try with another yard, just to see if the green alone matches.

But either way… I just unlocked the Dyeing Yarn achievement. Go me. (Yes, yes, it was pretty much a given once I figured out how to dye fibre, but you never really know till you try.)

ETA: The green alone was too bright, so I overdyed with a touch of brown; the result is toned down and more variegated, which better matches the original yarn. The green bits are very, um, emerald green, though. Still; no one will notice, as it’s just the bind off. (You hear that? NO ONE WILL NOTICE. Or else.)

Come on, yarn. Dry fully already, so I can cast off and be done with the damn scarf.

ETA: And DONE!

And here’s a look at the colour-matching dye trials. The one on the left is the second attempt and the one I used; the one on the right is the first attempt.