VISIT OUR ON FARM SHOP

"There's an easy way and a hard way. The good news is you get to choose." - Farmer Paul

We chose the hard way. 

When we thought up this hare brained scheme of growing yarn from scratch, the only option in my (Sherry) mind was to dye with plant matter. I had once watched The Biggest Little Farm on an international flight and I was sobbing with joy over the beauty of someone starting a regenerative farm from scratch. I tend to hug trees anyhow, so the delicate way in which each plant & critter contributed to this ecosystem of biodynamic balance really got my heart singing. What does that mean? It's basically farming the way that used to happen when a single little house on a prairie set up to feed its family. Long before anyone knew about pesticides and tractors that cost more than a typical house. The sheep graze between the grapevines, thus mowing the lawn but also fertilizing the soil and the chickens follow behind to eat the parasites and leave their own nitrogen contribution.

Does this get you going? I know!!! Awesome isn't it?!

Nevermind the epic amounts of labor it took them to achieve this. It's going to be GREAT!!!! I told Farmers Paul and Luke. They gave me the side eye they always tended to do when I took a simple plan and blew it out of the water with complexity.

Now we're knee deep in the epic labor phase (I honestly don't think that's ever going to go away) and I still deeply believe we're doing it the right way. It's just a crap ton of work. Crap included. As in on our shovels and our shoes and quite often the mudroom floor. 

The way in which we're dyeing the wool is a heck of a lot harder than it has to be. To begin with, we're growing as much of it as we can. This year it's only marigolds and chamomile, mint and nettles, but I have grand plans (see above) to put in an enormous dye garden. So there's that. But then the process of mordanting safely and then creating dye from plant matter takes a good long bit of time. It has been a LEARNING process for us. The indigo alone has rendered us a PHD in organic chemistry! 

But there was no way I was going to grow wool idyllically on our rolling pastures using local hay and grain to feed our beloved flock and then coat it in plastic. Superwash yarn takes dye more easily. It also means that it can go in the washing machine. But plastic, so no. HARD PASS. I wanted wool that could eventually return to the earth when its lifetime had passed. After a kazillion years, because heirlooms. So natural dyes only. But beyond the complexity of actually dyeing it, there's also the education of how natural dye behaves long term. Because again, the whole point is that this is for the long term. We aren't creating whims or fast fashion.

Natural dyes fade. 

It's why you love your jeans the longer you own them. Especially if you're into raw denim, you know that initially that dark stiff stuff fades into the feathery whiskers on the front of your thighs and pockets. It just gets softer, subtler and more wonderful. That's what we're selling, a natural product that is going to evolve over time. Because nature is what we do, it's essential you know this up front. If you want 10 skeins that are a vibrant perfectly consistent solid color with no variation, we are not your your source. And that's ok, because there are a lot of places to buy yarn. But it ain't us.

So your avocado ballet pink will eventually turn pinky beige in the same way that dance shoes do. A little lighter on the toes from dragging your foot into 1st position. Marigold will eventually go from vibrant citron yellow to a subtler yellow. You can prevent this progression by taking care not to dry it or store in direct sunlight. Lastly, Indigo is going to crock.

What the crock is Crocking?! 

If you've ever sewn with denim you know what this is. Your hands and your sewing machine will turn blueish until you clean it with a magic eraser or clorox wipe. Indigo is a color that crocks. Two seconds of science- crocking is when a fiber (wool for us) is fixed to the color with mordant - an assist that helps hold in the dye- and there is EXTRA. You get the part of the color that adheres to the yarn but also some that sits there without being bonded. It hangs on temporarily and when it is rinsed and then gently washed for blocking, it releases into the water. And potentially on your hands when you knit it. Which seems terribly wrong. I'll give you that it might be annoying, but it's not wrong, that's indigo. If this bothers you, which we understand, then indigo is not for you. 

We know that it's weird. So we have gone the extra mile to minimize this. 

First after it was dyed we rinsed it three full times. We let it dry 4-5 days then did another vinegar soak overnight (the acidity of vinegar locks color). After that we still weren't satisfied that it was gone so we washed it in a gentle eco friendly detergent and then soaked in a vinegar bath yet again. I know. Enough already!! 

All that to say, your fingers might turn blue. But it'll stop eventually. Just don't knit pants with it and then sit on your white leather car seats. Not that that wouldn't be fabulous, but it will definitely be blue. Until it's not. Indigo, it's shifty.

And one last thing.....

If you've not worked with hand dyed yarn before, you need to know that it is inconsistent. It's not a solid application of the color on the yarn. Therefor you need to alternate your skeins when you're working your project so that you get a beautiful marled effect of subtle variation. If you don't do that, it will be obvious where the skeins start and end. Like swatching, it's just a thing you need to do or you might be sorry. You do you, but you were warned ;)

xx- Sherry