WoolWork

The sponsors of the next episode of the podcast will be Croft 29, a small family business creating wool from their Hebridean flocks on Skye. I think the story behind their business is really special and wanted to share an interview with them here on the blog. Put the kettle on and join us….

croft 29 hebridean yarn

It was almost a year ago, I was in Fluph, in Dundee, and I saw a gloriously sheepy wool. The yarn – the colour of fresh cut peat – was an instant draw to these KnitBritish eyes (and hands) and I had to know more. The wool is described as genuine Hebridean wool from Skye. You can hear LJ introduce me to this yarn, and our first impressions of it,  in a wee snippet from episode 58 (you will have to follow the link to hear the whole episode and the answer to the question hank vs ball)

Croft 29 is a real croft on Skye, on the Trotternish peninsula, and is home to Stephen and Rachel Varwell and their family. They’ve been running the croft for 12 years and, as well as a small flock of Hebridean sheep, they keep a few Dexter cows (Bodan and Freya) and also their (extremely photogenic) sheepdog, Mac.

It’s been just over a year since the Varwell’s launched their Hebridean yarn; the wool – handshorn on the croft – is spun under the expertise of the Natural Fibre Company into a plump aran yarn. I wanted to ask Stephen and Rachel why they took the decision to create their own yarn.

“Crofts have never been full-time occupations and crofters have always had to be innovative to make money from what is a very marginal existence.  I guess that using our fleece to make a valuable by-product has in some ways been a logical and natural step, as we are making the most of the resources we have.” Read More