I get this question very often and rightly so, because you want to be very careful with your beautiful knitting that you have put so many hours into. However, there is not just 1 answer to this question. The bleeding of colors depends on so many things. First of all of the color itself, one color bleeds much more than the other. The temperature of the water is also very important and the hardness of the water can also have an influence. For example, I even saw a clear difference in the colors when we moved our studio to the other side of our village, so that we also got water from another supplier.
The yarn is always very well rinsed, until the water is clear. However, this does not guarantee that the same yarn will not bleed a little later, some colors are dyed at a high percentage for deep colors. Even if the rinse water is clear after washing, it may happen that after a few months of rest in a different environment, the skein will give off some color during the next wash. Certain reds are very sensitive to this, but you can actually say that you should pay attention to all deep, dark or bright colors. Before you start using colors together in a large project, it is best to knit a swatch in which all the different colors are incorporated. If you wash this swatch you can immediately see how the yarn reacts with water. Also consider this; would you ever wash a red t-shirt together with white towels at the same time? I think you can imagine the color pink you will see on your towels after a good soak. It is no different with wool. Does that mean you can never mix white and red? No, very often nothing bad happens. I would knit and wash a sample beforehand to see how the colors react, just to be sure.
If you are still afraid that the colors will bleed, proceed as follows:
Prepare several buckets with cold water (no, not lukewarm, really cold, because the warmer it is, the sooner it will bleed and settle in the lighter parts of your knitting). Immerse your knitting in the first bucket, keep moving it gently and don't let it rest for long. Also use 1 or 2 color catchers (special cloth for the washing machine that attaches color that is released) in this first bath. Don't walk away and watch what happens all the time. When you see color coming free, immediately remove your knitted piece from the bucket, squeeze it well and put it in the next bath of cold water and repeat the procedure. Repeat this for as long as necessary, but if the dark or bright color starts to 'bleed' intensely, chances are that it will continue, even after a 5th bath .... In most cases 1 or 2 baths with a number of color catchers will be enough. If no more color is released, you can add a dash of Eucalan or Soak in the last bath. This soap is very gentle on the wool and the color and of course it also gives a nice scent to your piece. Even now it is important not to leave it on for too long and to rinse it in time. Also, always make sure that the piece has enough space and does not have to be folded into a bath, the chance of stains is even bigger when there isn't enough space for your knitting to float freely.
If the yarn is speckled, it can also happen that there are still some loose grains of dye. In general, you will find that these small parts sink to the bottom of the tub quickly and cause no problems. You often see it on your hands while knitting, especially certain ocher / yellow shades have this tendency.
Has a stain already been formed like in the photo? Then unfortunately there are no panacea and it is not possible to remove it. Pretend it belongs there (after all, it's handmade and often you're the only one seeing it) and wear your hand-knitted / crocheted pieces with pride!
Is het een idee om het voltooide product een tijde in koud zout water te zetten? Of in koud water met azijn? Om de kleur te fixeren?