Color in Spinning
Deb Menz
Interweave Press, 2005
Paperbound, 240 pages, over 300 color and black-and-white photographs, 55 illustrations
$25 - includes shipping in the U.S.
An autographed copy can be requested

A paperbound edition of Deb Menz's classic guide to color for handspinners. Menz offers a technically savvy yet acessible tutorial on working with color and fiber. Included are illustrated demonstrations and in-depth discussions on immersion dyeing, painted rovings, blending colors and fibers, and spinning and plying multicolored preparations. Whether you're a novice or an expert, no spinner's library is complete without Color in Spinning.

"An essential manual for any handspinner who wishes to add color to handspun yarn.... Highly recommended." - Library Journal

"Through gorgeous illustrations, in-depth discussions, enjoyable text and detailed tutorials, this book has everything a fiber artist needs to learn about color in handspinning. I'm at a loss as to what Deb Menz left out of this impressive book...." - Cara Randall, BellaOnline

ColorWorks
The Crafter's Guide to Color
Deb Menz
Interweave Press, 2004
Covered spiral binding, 152 pages
$20 - includes shipping in the U.S.
An autographed copy can be requested

Stumped about which colors to use in a fiber project? Use Color Works and fret no more. The principles of color theory are presented at a practical level and then applied with real examples from knitting, spinning, weaving, surface design, hand and machine embroidery, beadwork, paper collage, and quilting.

“The detachable card tools, combined with the colour wheel, form an invaluable teaching aid. Together they provide a simple but effective way of becoming familiar with the main objects of achieving colour harmony”.
— Rag Hatters

“This is the best ever guide to using colour. It is a cardmaker's delight and an amazingly beautiful book, each page singing with vibrant colour charts”. — Making Cards

Color by Number Basic Book
Sara Lamb and Deb Menz
Limited edition
$225

"People kept asking us for reference books on how to use Lanaset dyes." In response, comprehensive dye notebooks were born. Deb and California fiber artist, Sara Lamb, developed and produced Color by Number -- a recipe book in two volumes to be used as reference for people who want to dye protein fibers (as opposed to synthetic or vegetable fibers). Their particular usefulness is that in addition to containing actual dye formulas, the notebooks contain real samples of dyed fiber showing what the end result will look like. One-thousand-one hundred sixteen color samples to be precise. This complete guide is invaluable to experienced dyers as well as accessible to beginners.

The basic book has samples of DOS ranges of 0.1 to 4 of each dye color, each dye color mixed with proportions of black and brown as well as a whole range of analogous two-color mixes in both a DOS of 1 and 0.1. It is a great reference for any level of dyer. A VERY limited number are available.

Color by Number Book 2
Sara Lamb and Deb Menz, 2006
Limited edition
$225

This is a continuation of the Basic book. In this edition we take the concept of complementary color pairs and create a series of formulas with each pair. We use 3-color mixes with 13 of the Lanaset dye colors in a DOS of 1 and 0.1. The notebook contains 740 samples and formulas. They are now available and a limited number are left.

Fiber Preparation and Multicolor Blending Techniques
with Deb Menz
87 minutes
$34 - includes shipping in the U.S.

This video introduces many ways to prepare fiber for spinning, using both drum carder and combs. The focus is how to use fibers that have already been dyed to create multi-colored yarns. It starts with drum carding "101" on how to effectively choose and use a drum carder. Then it's on to blending colors to create new colors. Learn how to get predictable results, to blend luxury fibers, and to create multi-colored drum-carded batts so the colors stay clear and bright. Multi-colored rovings can also be created using combs. By using already combed and dyed wool top, the multi-colors will be created in a multi-step process of color arrangement on wide combs or hackles. Designing plied yarns concludes this workshop.

Fiber Dying: Immersion and Painting
with Deb Menz
73 minutes
$28 - includes shipping in the U.S.

Beginning with a full fleece, you will learn proper skirting, sorting, and scouring techniques as you prepare the fiber for dyeing. The applying of color to protein fibers before the fibers are spun is easy and fun. First, learn step-by-step how to use the dyes (lanaset) and dye your fibers in a dyepot. A color wheel is used as a reference to figure out how to mix your own colors and create our own dye formulas. A second approach to applying color on fibers is to directly paint dye onto unspun roving. You will also learn how to use the painted fibers to create complex, repeatable multi-color yarns.