From the sheep to your needles

Modern consumerism often separates us from the things we wear and use; however, hand-crafts have a singular ability to create connections. With our hands, we create connections between stitches to form wearable items, yet rarely are the crafters hands the only hands to have deftly worked that yarn. Knowing the provenance of our wool, the sheep and all the people involved in the process, reminds us that we are all connected.

THE SOURCE

The wools used in our yarns are sourced from farms in either New Zealand or the United Kingdom. Farming practices in both of these countries are highly regulated ensuring that animal welfare is paramount. The wool is scoured and spun within the country of origin, where employment and production laws dictate a safe working environment and appropriate remuneration for workers' skills.

The wool for our PAKIHI yarn is sourced from our own flock of arapawa sheep, while the Gotland wool is sourced from a neighbouring flock, both being sustainably farmed in New Zealand’s Tasman region.

THE DYE PROCESS

To create our range of shades, we use professional acid exhaust dyes. These dyes, when correctly fixed, form an irreversible bond with the yarn. The amount of dye used is carefully calculated and prepared to ensure efficient exhaustion and no unbound dye is ever discharged into the environment. Our yarns are all thoroughly rinsed and air dried before being skeined, photographed, labelled and fauned over.