March 2009

Although we are still getting clobbered by an occasional snowstorm, winter is losing a bit of its punch here in New England. The lengthening daylight hours, muddy back roads and sap buckets on the trees are all good signs that spring is heading our way. We are right in the midst of shearing and on the cusp of lambing, which feels like a good time to tell you about several new endeavors:

Introducing Sheep Shares: The Club for Farm Fiber Fans!

This spring launches our first ever club featuring the fiber from our flock. Sheep Shares, the club for farm fiber connoisseurs, brings the wool from my sheep to your door four times a year. There’s a club for knitters and a club for spinners, myriad color options, and special perks for club members. Membership is limited to ensure all members receive their share. Click here to learn more.

Yarn Farm: From Sheep to Skein

Have you ever wondered about the process that takes wool from a flock of sheep and transforms it to soft and succulent stitches on your needles? Learn about this metamorphosis in a series of stories I’ve written for the new on-line knitting magazine Twist Collective. Beginning with the just released spring issue, I tell the story of yarn farming throughout the course of the year. Click here to read my first two installments, which focus on my favorite spring rites: shearing and lambing.
For a look at the lighter side of yarn farming, join me at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 21 at Webs Yarn Store, Northampton, MA for “Adventures in Yarn Farming” my slideshow & talk about keeping sheep. In addition to my talk, I’ll be having a one- day yarn trunk show from 10:30 - 5 pm smack dab in the middle of WEBS, America’s biggest yarn store. I thank my hosts Kathy and Steve Elkins for this opportunity to share my story. Hope to see you there!

Name the Lamb Contest Update - and Seven Little Surprises

I’m pleased to announce the results of our contest for choosing the theme for naming this year’s lambs. After reading many wonderfully creative suggestions, we have chosen COLORS as a theme for naming this year’s lambs, suggested by Lisa of New Hampshire. This theme feels apropos for several reasons. The month of May brings the release of my hand-dyeing book, and I am tickled to announce that later this spring we add a very colorful new breed to our flock. Seven CVM/Romeldale lambs will arrive in April from Yellow Creek Cottage farm in Ohio!
CVM/Romeldales are among the most distinctive looking sheep you will find. They also happen to be the most critically rare of all the rare breeds of sheep in the U.S. today (as listed in the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy). Since one of our goals for our 220 acre farm is to maintain its working heritage, we welcome the opportunity to use our farm’s resources to foster a critically rare breed. What better use for our barns, pastures and hay fields?
To see more photos of our CVM lambs visit my blog: Sheep Gal: Notes from an Upland Shepherd, where you can join the fun of naming our new arrivals in another contest.

March is coming in like a lion but with any luck will go out like a lamb. Until then, my days will be busy in the shearing shed and at the skirting table.

Best,

Barb