Melbourne Snood Crochet Kit with naturally dyed Australian merino wool

Crocheting is a beautiful way to relax and unwind after a busy day, and you’ll love making and wearing your Melbourne Snood.

The soft merino wool, filled with the love of being 100% Australian grown, processed and dyed, is calming to touch. It’s a yarn that won’t cover you in fluff and your scarf will be an heirloom that will look good for a long time. It’s quick and easy to crochet with too.

Each naturally dyed skein has its own unique personality – there will never be another one exactly like it.

I’ve been experimenting with naturally dyeing yarns on and off for years, and this year I set myself the challenge to dye yarn with the smallest environmental impact possible.

It’s a unique, low impact, slow and local process, and the result is a range of natural colours that reflect what’s happening in the environment on our remote cattle property near Quilpie, South West Queensland.

I use:

• rainwater collected from the roof
• solar power generated on our property
• things grown on our property
• citric acid (this is needed to hold the colour, and is the same citric acid used in cooking)
• our Homelea Bliss super chunky yarn, fully made in Australia from merino wool which has been grown in Australia

Skill level – beginner:

Lots of people have learnt to crochet with the Melbourne Snood online course and have gone on to make beautiful blankets.

It’s  suitable for beginners to advanced crocheters – no prior crochet experience is required, and the online course takes you step by step through crocheting the Melbourne Snood. It’s like I’m sitting beside you, showing you what to do.

Read the experiences of a beginner making the Melbourne Snood here.

Everything you need:

• 25mm (U) ergonomic crochet hook
• 300g skein of Homelea Bliss Australian merino wool yarn (will make at least 1 scarf)
• crochet pattern and online course
• 2 stitch markers
• scissors
• tape measure or ruler
• “made with love” tag (optional)

Size: The Melbourne Snood is 18cm (7.1in) high and 70cm (27.6in) around and you can change the size to suit what you’d like. Over time it may grow a little depending on how you wear and store it – I love how wool responds to each person differently. Want it to go back to the original size? Wash it in cool water with wool wash, and then shape it to the correct size and lie it flat to dry.

Please note: these skeins are slightly smaller than the standard 300g skeins of Homelea Bliss, and vary between 290g and 298g. The yarn is a super chunky / super bulky size that is about 1cm / 0.4in thick.

Colours: these colours are unique and I have made sure the photographs closely capture the actual colours of the yarn. Please be aware that different screens display colours differently. If you would like more information on the colours or would like to see some skeins side by side, please let me know in the web chat (bottom right corner of the screen).

Care instructions: cold, gentle hand wash with a wool wash and lie flat to dry in the shade. As the naturally dyed colours are delicate, I recommend washing them individually and do not put them in the sun.

Good to know: you may find some vegetable matter in Homelea Bliss. I love how this links the making process back to what the sheep was eating as it grew the wool.

Made by hand in Australia: I make all of the Homelea Lass kits by hand in the Homelea Lass studio. It’s located on a remote cattle property near Quilpie in south west Queensland, Australia. I use Australian made components whenever possible.

Whether you relax into the joy of making these chunky stitches or give it as a gift, the calm crochet contained in this kit always delights.

With love, Lynda.