Why Falkland?

Falkland wool is a merino cross that comes from the Falkland Islands. It is a squishy, soft spin with lots of bounce, and a longer staple length than merino. Falkland is my most consistent source of wool that is good for the sheep, the environment, and for us. The Falkland I buy does not have the chemical processing that is used in most commercially processed wool and so retains some lanolin and a bit of a sheepy smell when wet. Mmmm. Sheepy.

How does the club work?

What you get.

Each subscription to the fiber club lasts 3 months (in this instance, July-Sept). You get 4 oz of Falkland wool in an exclusive cosymakes colorway, hand dyed by me with Greener Shades Professional Acid Dyes. You may instead choose to get a double batch (8 oz). If I have left overs of the colorway, they will not make it into my shop until at least 6 months later.

Pricing:

Single Fiber
Pay up front (preferred): $54
Pay month by month: $18/month

Double the Fiber
Pay up front (preferred): $102
Pay month by month: $34

*International shipping by request
Australia single batch is an additional $8.40 for the 3 months
Canada double batch is an additional $6.00 for the 3 months

Due to the brand new birth, all slots are only available by contacting me directly at cosymakes(!at)gmail(dot!)com.  Mind you, there are also a limited number of slots this time around.

Your fiber will be mailed USPS 1st class around the 20th of each month. If you have chosen the pay monthly option, expect the bill between the 10th and 15th. I will only mail your shipment if you have paid.

red/pink/purple goes to kristyn over at pleasurecraft.
her favorite fiber is “lovely local mohair locks spun uncarded or the bouncy farm raised border leicester from my friend janice.”

yellow/red/orange goes to rose over at rose unraveled. her current favorite fiber: california red!

yellow/green goes to sarah (comment 26). her favorite fiber so far has been cormo.

blue/purple/green goes to rachel (comment 7). she had this to say about her favorite fibers: as far as ease of spinning goes, I like bfl. but overall, my favorite fiber is alpaca!

i had a really fun time reading what your favorites are. i love that spinners come in so many shapes and sizes and interests and textures :) if you want to read everyone’s favorites, you can do so here. really, all the responses make me want to spin EVERYTHING! in sight, but alas. carpal tunnel. boo.

the last was for designers, this one is for spinners.  don’t worry knitters, there will be one for you too!  but this time i would like to spread the falkland love!

the rules:
-you must be a spinner or want to be a spinner
-you must tell me if you’ve ever spun falkland wool from a bleach and chemical free source or not
-you must comment upon this post by 9 PM eastern time on Sunday the 8th and tell me what your favorite fiber to spin has been so far

there will be 4 winners this time (see the 4 photos).  anyone who has never spun falkland from a chemical free source will have a chance at all 4, those who have spun it before will be entered in the drawing for 2.  each winner will receive a 2 oz bundle of my hand dyed falkland wool, complied of at least 2 colorways, to be spun as you see fit. the winners will be drawn by random number generator and announced on monday the 9th.

this is the same falkland that i dye for my shop and for the falkland fiber club.

up in the shop today!

i also put up a couple of blue skeins of snapdragon worsted that were hanging around.

ETA: and the may newsletter too!

About farm wool:
‘Farm wool’ is wool that is pretty dang close to the farm. That means that the money I spent on this wool goes to the farmer and small mill where it was processed. Farm wool also means that you may find a stray piece of vegetable matter (vm) or two in your wool ;) personally, I find that all the more charming. Like the Falkland, Farm wool, has not been through the chemical acid bath that commercially processed wool goes through. This wool should also be slightly softer and retain more character and lanolin than its commercial counterpart. I promise you that spinning farm wool will be totally different than commercial top!

Why is this more expensive than the falkland club?
Farm wool costs more than commercially processed wool, but it has also had much more care in the preparing of it. Because farm wool is so fluffy and newly processed, it is more difficult to dye and often needs to be dyed in smaller batches and so it takes more time to dye.

How does the club work?

1) What you get.

Each subscription to the fiber club lasts 3 months (in this instance, April-June). You get 4 oz of farm wool in an exclusive cosymakes colorway, hand dyed by me with Greener Shades Professional Acid Dyes*.

this is sort of a mixed bag
4 oz – 80% targhee / 20% mohair
5 oz – over-dyed brown fine fleece
3 oz – long staple corridale

the first is from a farm in ohio who i’ve bought from before.  this is probably their last year, since they are moving on from farming and have gotten rid of their goats. the second is a fleece i fell in love with at the fleece sale at Maryland sheep and wool, and had processed. it will want to be spun thin, i think. the third is also from a fleece from maryland – and when i say long staple, i mean corries are often sheared twice a year and this one was only sheared once!

2) Sign up!

I am offering this club to my blog readers first because there are only a limited number of spaces. To sign up for the club email me at cosymakes (at) gmail (dot) com with the following information and Farm Wool Fiber Club as the subject

*name and address
*paypal email (for billing) and how you would like to pay – or alternately agree to pay with a check for the full 3 months
*if you’d like to be on the waiting list if you don’t get in this round (i will note on this post when the club is full! if it doesn’t say anything when you email me, you’re most likely in.)

3) Pay.

Pay up front (preferred): $69

Pay month by month: $23/month

International shipping by request

4) Spin!

Your fiber will be mailed USPS 1st class around the 20th of each month. If you have chosen the pay monthly option, expect the bill between the 10th and 15th. I will only mail your shipment if you have paid.

*I dye using greener shades dyes. they are low impact heavy metal-free dyes. All but the teal meet the Organic Trade Association’s requirements for organic fiber processing.

and i washed my recent handspun for homespun yarn party, somewhere in there

and i’ve finished these two variations on a theme and am at the point of grading the pattern

and this one is with test knitters as i write

so life appears to go on even without me :)

rachel came home from work on saturday and transformed the main living area of the house into a drum carding craziness.  i’ll probably spin them into singles, although no promises. it might be fun to ply some drum carded with some top… or…

i’ve also been doing lots of spinning for homespun yarn party.  maybe you’ll get a pretty picture of that next week.  there are currently 11 skeins in the pile and i’m hoping for a bunch more before i have to wash.

going up in the shop today!  i’ve been having lots of fun taking one colorway and plying it with another.  both of the top yarns were made that way.  i can’t encourage it enough.  and there is actually more than one skein of each of these, with the exception of the upper left.

have a great day!

p.s. and here’s this month’s newsletter, if you’re interested.

that is what i’d deem the good kind of lying. two skeins handspun and 3 skeins each colorway of rainbow chard light – going up in the shop today! and i’ll be trying to get together an update for next week too.

p.s. and don’t forget this giveaway for some of my yarns and patterns!

going up in the shop today.