My name is Aida.
I am Spanish, I am 32 years old and I have been knitting for 13 years.
In 2015 I opened a channel on YouTube called Lanátika where I share techniques and tutorials in Spanish. I am fascinated by the fact that technology allows us to learn so much and unite us as knitters.
My passion for the world of wool has almost inevitably led me to dyeing. I started dyeing with acid dyes and ended up immersed in the fantastic world of natural dyes. Although I like acid dyes very much, I feel that I connect more with the slow rhythm of natural dyes.
I am very excited to be a bridge between a sheep and your skein.
About me
My work
Tíntica is born in an attic full of plants, roots, leaves, flowers, peels, fruits and more. The pots steam and the alchemy arises, resulting in a wool treated with love, respect and … patience. Should I tell you how a skein of Tintica makes it to your hands?
(Earth) A sheep gives birth. Her pregnancy and the first months of raising the sheep will have a lot to do with the quality of the wool. I endeavour to find the best quality wool on market. Also, I give a lot of importance to local production. For that reason, I work with wool of my own country, Spain.
Well, our sheep grows, and once a year, it is sheared.
The wool is sent to a spinning factory where they spin it.
There it has also received a chemical process called superwash that helps prevent the wool from felting. Even so, Tíntica wool has a reduced superwash process to achieve a balance between naturalness and practicality. That is why you have to keep in mind that it’s not free from a possibly felting.
(Water) When I receive the wool, I wind it to make the skeins smaller. I rinse them and let them soak for a few hours.
Afterwards, I mordent them. This process consists of treating them with some component so the dye adheres permanently to the wool. In my case I use alum, a mineral, and cream of tartar, a by-product of wine production that crystallizes in the barrels.
(Fire) Meanwhile, I boil the botanical materials that I need to extract the dye.
Then, I bathe the wool in the dye at 80º C for one hour or more, depending on the tone I want.
(Air) I let the wool rest, I wash it well with neutral soap and lavender essential and I tend it so that the sun and the air dry it.
Once dry, I skein and label them. Each creation fascinates me and is unique, because natural dyes are unpredictable. That’s why I can never assure that two dyeing sessions will be the same, even using the same recipe. The ripeness of that pomegranate, the amount of nitrogen in the soil that nourished that chamomile plant … Everything influences its color and makes it unique.
(Love) The story of this product is not over yet. A creation is about to come from each of these skeins.
With pleasure,
One more intermediary between the sheep… and your skein.
Tíntica is born in an attic full of plants, roots, leaves, flowers, peels, fruits and more. The pots steam and the alchemy arises, resulting in a wool treated with love, respect and … patience. Should I tell you how a skein of Tintica makes it to your hands?
(Earth) A sheep gives birth. Her pregnancy and the first months of raising the sheep will have a lot to do with the quality of the wool. I endeavour to find the best quality wool on market. Also, I give a lot of importance to local production.
Well, our sheep grows, and once a year, it is sheared.
The wool is sent to a spinning factory where they spin it.
There it has also received a chemical process called superwash that helps prevent the wool from felting. Even so, Tíntica wool has a reduced superwash process to achieve a balance between naturalness and practicality. That is why you have to keep in mind that it’s not free from a possibly felting.
(Water) When I receive the wool, I wind it to make the skeins smaller. I rinse them and let them soak for a few hours.
Afterwards, I mordent them. This process consists of treating them with some component so the dye adheres permanently to the wool. In my case I use alum, a mineral, and cream of tartar, a by-product of wine production that crystallizes in the barrels.
(Fire) Meanwhile, I boil the botanical materials that I need to extract the dye.
Then, I bathe the wool in the dye at 80º for one hour or more, depending on the tone I want.
(Air) I let the wool rest, I wash it well and I tend it so that the sun and the air dry it.
Once dry, I skein and label them. Each creation fascinates me and is unique, because natural dyes are unpredictable. That’s why I can never assure that two dyeing sessions will be the same, even using the same recipe.
(Love) The story of this product is not over yet. A creation is about to come from each of these skeins.
With pleasure,
One more intermediary between the sheep… and your skein.