Adventures in yarn farming : four seasons on a New England fiber farm
Title:
Adventures in yarn farming : four seasons on a New England fiber farm
Author:
ISBN:
9781590308233
Edition:
First edition.
Physical Description:
ix, 310 pages : color illustrations, maps ; 24 cm
Contents:
Casting on -- The road to Springdelle Farm -- Flocking -- Good fibrations -- The ideas of March -- Springdelle jacket -- Lamb watch -- The full lamb moon -- Jammies for lambies -- Troubleshooting lams -- Lamb-pedes and a llama -- Hay-lelujah! -- Cutting the apron strings -- Grazing days -- The kitchen garden -- A summer meal from the kitchen garden -- Lavender harvest -- Lavender pillows -- Bridge of flowers cardigan -- Fun with tractors -- Hay day -- At the mill -- The zen of dyeing -- Dyeing and hand spinning a self-striping yarn -- Field and sky woven tablet cozy -- The ram is half the sweater -- Goats are born looking for trouble -- Dyeing, combing, and spinning mohair -- Sundance scarf -- New York State Sheep and Wool Festival -- In a wild place -- Wildwood cabled pullover -- Gathering the flock -- Ice storm -- Winter solstice -- Solstice hat -- Snowshoe shepherd -- Dip-dyed yarn -- Full snow moon cowl and mitts -- In the sugar bush -- Sumac mittens -- Binding off -- Abbreviations -- Guidelines for safely dyeing yarn and fiber.
Personal Subject:
Genre:
Summary:
City and suburb dwellers sometimes dream about what it would be like to live on a country farm and raise animals. Adventures in Yarn Farming invites readers to participate vicariously in the daily life of a working sheep farm without ever having to muck out a barn, be chased by a recalcitrant ram, or lift a hay bale. Told through the eyes of veteran shepherd and textile artisan, Barbara Parry's stories follow her flock over the course of a year, showing all the facets of life connected to sheep and making yarn. Readers get a front-row seat to the sheep show -- tending sheep on winter mornings, shearing day, the round-the-clock chaos of lambing season, preparing fiber for yarn -- and a visit to Barbara's dye studio, where she transforms skeins for hand-knit creations. With the growing locavore movement, the rising eco-friendly trend in sustainable farming, and the ever-increasing interest in crafting, this book is relevant on many fronts. It will draw readers who yearn for a closer connection with a rural lifestyle and who enjoy making things by hand. Through 13 projects, as well as sidebars and side excursions, readers get a slice of life on a New England farm.
