sheep

Episode 21: Flying Fibers – Heritage breeds, Amish pastures, English roots and Building family legacy

May 12, 2015

I’m very excited to share the twentieth episode of the Woolful podcast. Today we get to meet two special women, a mother and daughter team who have created a fiber farm and shop in Lancaster Pennsylvania, Jeri Robinson-Lawrence and Irina Lawrence.

Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by Knitterly, a very special yarn shop created by Shelli Westcott, based in Petaluma California and online at shop.knitterly.net. I am always so amazed at the well curated selection of yarns, fibers and classes Shelli works so hard to provide all us fiber enthusiasts. Make sure to visit when in Petaluma and online at shop.knitterly.net

Fiber folk: I first met Jeri when she emailed me last Fall before the podcast even began. I was intrigued by the heritage breed sheep she and her daughter were raising and their efforts in creating awareness about these wonderful breeds and their wool. Their passion around education and breed preservation is a great thing, but even more great than that is their dedication to doing what they do, in whatever capacity they can. You can find Jeri and Irina at flyingfibers.com and on Instagram @flyingfibers.

Man on the street: For this week’s “Man on the Street” I asked the question, “How has your family been involved or interested in your fiber interests? For example, have they joined you at fiber festivals or knit your designs or dyed or began knitting/weaving/crocheting, etc.” We had some great answers from Melissa @hey_lday_hey, Nikki @woolenviolets, Kirsten @littlepennycress and Amber @dapperewe!

Giveaway: The winner of last week’s giveaway, is Colleen Davis! You’ve won a Westknits e-book of your choice and a Wiksten Tank pattern from Have Company. Congratulations!

The giveaway this week is sponsored by Flying Fibers, and we’re giving away two skeins of some very special, Wensleydale yarn. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment below.

This week we had a few exciting updates in the Woolful Mercantile, with the addition of some new yarns, in particular a fingering weight Cormo and Organic cotton blend. We’ve also released the Summer quarter Natural Dye Club which features this same fingering weight Cormo and Organic cotton yarn. We have updated project kits, including cabinfour’s Pure shawl project kit that comes with 3 skeins of Ravine, a Targhee – Columbia – Ramboulliet and Alpaca blend in Aran weight. We’ll also be updating our cabinfour Nordic Wind shawl project kits later next month when we get the next batch of Greenbow Farm’s Icelandic Lopi yarn…I know you all have been waiting and excited for this, and we’re very excited too! This Summer and Fall we’re expanding our online shop and I’ve been busy meeting with different farmers and producers as we get ready to bring some very special yarns your way. Thank you for all your support thus far of our little venture.

I apologize to everyone who’s been attempting to listen to the podcast via iTunes or Stitcher for the past few episodes and weren’t able to. We had some security issues with the site a month back and due to our enhanced security measures we didn’t realize iTunes and Stitcher had not been able to access our feed. It’s since been fixed and you can now access each episode.

Music by Jónsi.

Transcription coming soon!

91 Comments

Making Podcast Woolful Podcast

Episode 16: Michael Hampton and Tamara White – Vermont fiber farming and milling, Shetland sheep and overcoming fear

March 24, 2015

I’m very excited to share the sixteenth episode of the Woolful podcast. Today we get to meet two very enthusiastic fiber folks from Vermont, both of whom have had quite the journey to where they are today…Michael Hampton of Hampton Fiber Mill and Tamara White of Wing and a Prayer Farm.

Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by Taproot Magazine, a quarterly print magazine full of delightful stories and photos written by and for people living fuller and digging deeper. Each issue is created around a subtle theme, featuring amazing recipes, crafts, and tales, all with the intention of inspiring people who are interested in deepening their connections to their families, communities, and themselves as they strive to live locally and closer to the ground. You can visit Taproot Magazine online at Taprootmag.com and on Instagram @taprootmag.

Fiber folk 1: Michael is a passionate knitter, spinner, and fiber mill entrepreneur. He’s been on an exciting journey from engineer to now building and operating a fiber mill in Richmond, Vermont where he mills a very exhaustive list of wools and fibers, including our second guest Tamara’s beautiful yarn. His enthusiasm and excitement for fiber and helping bring something back to this community and industry is a really wonderful thing. You can find him at Hamptonfibermill.com and on Instagram @hamptonfibermill.

For this week’s “Man on the Street” I asked a handful of fiber enthusiasts to answer a question, shared by Samantha in our Raverly group. “Is there a project that inspired you to improve your skills?” We had some amazing replies from Nikki @woolenviolet and Leanne @leannecoppola.

Fiber folk 2: Our next guest, Tamara is a gem among farmers, fiber folks and friends. We were lucky enough to have her and her daughters SJ and Char, stay for a visit last week at our home. Our time together was filled with laughter, good food, Vermont maple syrup and plenty of farm stories and it was great to be able to talk and record our chat in person as we all sat on the living room floor. She is a true testament of strength, compassion and her love of fiber farming and her animals is infectious. You can find her at wingandaprayerfarm.com and on Instagram @wingandaprayerfarm.

The winner of last week’s giveaway, is Jessica from Mittens and Mason Jars! You’ve won 5 skeins of the Westcountry Tweed yarn from Blacker Yarns. Congratulations!

This week’s giveaway is sponsored by Taproot Magazine, and we’re giving away a two year subscription to this wonderful publication that brings so much to this community. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment below.

We’ve got an exciting shop update this week. Tamara, our second guest has worked very hard to create some beautiful yarns, all carefully and skillfully milled by our first guest Michael. Her latest yarns include a bulky white Shetland and Mohair blend, and two aran weight yarns, a warm brownish grey Shetland and Mohair, and a dark rich grey Merino, Shetland and Mohair. You can now find all three yarns exclusively in the Woolful Mercantile and woolfulmercantile.com

Music by Jónsi

Transcription to follow shortly…

160 Comments

Making Podcast Woolful Podcast

Episode 15: Kim Goodling and Sue Blacker – Gotland sheep, building a fiber mill, raising kids on a farm and rare breeds.

March 17, 2015

I’m very excited to share the fifteenth episode of the Woolful podcast. Today we get to meet two fiber folks, both women with a special love for Gotland sheep and both with unique fiber journeys that have taken them to interesting and inspiring places…Sue Blacker of Blacker Yarns and The Natural Fibre Company and Kim Goodling of Vermont Grand View Farm.

Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by Portfiber, a wonderful shop in Portland, Maine, specializing in one of a kind, hand-dyed fiber and yarn. Casey has curated an incredible collection of spinning fiber including yak, Chiri, Alpaca, Polwarth and hand-dyed blends. You can visit Portfiber in person when in Portland Maine or shop online at portfiber.com

Fiber folk 1: Kim is a passionate ambassador and breeder of Gotland Sheep, dyer, entrepreneur and hardworking mom. She runs a beautiful farm in Vermont where she hosts farm stays and a great selection of fiber related classes. She recently launched her online shop of Gotland yarns and fibers at gotlandwoolcompany.com You can find her at grandviewfarmvt.net and on Instagram @vtgrandviewfarm.

For this week’s “Man on the Street” I asked a handful of fiber enthusiasts to answer a question, shared by Cady in our Raverly group. “What advice would you give to someone just starting their fiber journey?” We had some amazing replies from Sonja, Samantha, Beatrice, and Abby.

Fiber folk 2: Our next guest, Sue has a pretty amazing and adventurous fiber journey, beginning with her flock of Gotland sheep and life as a fiber farmer in the UK, where she runs her fiber mill, The Natural Fibre Company and specialty breed yarn company, Blacker Yarns. She puts an incredible amount of work into spreading the word and love of Gotlands and other rare sheep breeds. You can find her at thenaturalfibre.co.uk and at blackeryarns.co.uk.

The winner of last week’s giveaway, is Madeline Fidler! You’ve won the Radius pattern collection from Dreareneeknits and two skeins of Radius Yarn Bulky from Knitterly. Congratulations!

This week’s giveaway is sponsored by Blacker Yarns, and we’re giving away 5 skeins of their Westcountry Tweed. All the fiber from this yarn comes from within a 100 miles of the Natural Fibre Company mill in the UK, made with intentions to have the smallest footprint possible. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment below.