Sponsor: Ewetopia is a local yarn shop in rural Viroqua, WI, carrying a beautiful selection of yarns and fibers, including their very own line of hand dyed yarns. One of my favorite things about Ewetopia is it’s generational foundation, the shop was started by Kathryn Ashley-Wright and later her mother Lisa Wright joined her as partner in the business. Along with Kathryn’s grandmother Gloria and her daughters Stella and Mae…you’ll sometimes find all four generations busy around the shop…what a special thing to have. In addition to the Ewetopia shop and yarn brand, Kathryn and her family have a farm in southwestern Wisconsin where they grow certified organic hay and rotationally graze their flock of 50 ewes…comprised of Corriedale, Border Leicester and Merino crosses, which contribute to their Ewetopia yarn and fiber line. If you’re in the Viroqua area or just passing through, make sure to visit them in person. You can find a selection of Ewetopia yarns and fibers, and more info on the shop and farm online at ewetopiafibershop.com. And find them on Instagram @ewetopiayarn.
Fiber folk: Jill Draper is what I would call one of the OG’s of hand dyed and small farm yarns. From studying fine arts, to making decoupage vases and then finding her calling in dyeing yarn which led to creating her own bases from small flocks around the US, Jill is a gem in this industry and craft. So much of my early interest in farm yarns came from watching Jill’s journey and passion for working with traceable fibers and milling with domestic mills. Many of you may be familiar with Empire, or yarn babies as many call them…boasting 1280 of aran weight Rambouillet wool. She recently released her newest yarn Rifton, a wonderful combination of natural colored and dyed wool. You can find Jill’s incredible line of yarns at many of your favorite local yarn shops and her newest yarn Rifton in her Etsy shop Jill Draper Makes Stuff. Visit jilldraperblogs.blogspot.com to follow her adventure in yarn making and on Instagram @jillmakesstuff.
Sponsor: Fancy Tiger Crafts is a special yarn, fabric and notions shop based out of Denver Colorado. This inspired place is owned and operated by self proclaimed fiber nerds, Jaime Jennings and Amber Corcoran…two women who’s hope and journey have allowed them to share their knowledge, adventures and passion in fiber, and this is reflected in their beautiful shop as well as their endeavors in creating their own farm yarn Heirloom. Fancy Tiger Crafts is one of my favorite places to shop online for fabric, patterns and yarn, but I’m even more excited to visit the shop in person when I’m in Denver in a couple weeks. I plan to pickup their newest sewing pattern Fen and hopefully find some time to sew this Winter. Starting this coming weekend they’ll be hosting Brooklyn Tweeds Wool People 9 Trunk Show, so make sure to visit Fancy Tiger Crafts in person and online at fancytigercrafts.com and on Instagram @fancytigercrafts.
Man on the street: For this week’s “Man on the Street” I asked the question, “What is your favorite yarn with a story?”. We had some great answers from Amy @urban_wife_farm, Melissa @hey_lady_hey, Leanne @leannecoppola
Giveaway: The winner of last week’s giveaway is, Jordan You’ve won 2 skeins of Lincoln Longwool yarn from Orchard View Lincoln Longwools. Congratulations!
This week we’re giving away a skein of Jill Draper’s Rifton Spun to Stripe fingering yarn. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment on this blog post.
Music by Jónsi.