Frequently Asked Questions

Do you spin your own wool? No. I have spun wool in the past, but I'm not very good at it, and it takes me a long time.    Does your yarn come from your own sheep? No. I do not have sheep. I purchase the rug yarn that I sell from a mill in the United States. They create yarn from wool from New Zealand.  It is natural-colored (not dyed), when I purchase it.   I sometimes dye and sell yarn from my good friend's Angora goats. This is mohair yarn.    Do you use 'natural dyes'? I use washfast acid dyes from Pro Chemical and Dye company. I consider these dyes to be as safe as - or safer than - using natural dyes.  An article in the September/Octover 1992 issue of Rug Hooking magazine, written by Mary Klotz of Forestheart Studio, addressed the issue of natural versus 'chemical' dyes. Here's a paragraph from that article: "Natural dyes aren't chemical free, whether mordants are used or not.  Natural dyes are full of chemicals, including drugs and poisons: taxol, the new cancer drug comes from yew bark and leaves; digitalis from foxgloves;opium from poppies.  Many plants are unsafe to ingest; some are skin irritants; all carry additional hazards of insects, molds, pollens and the ability to sensitize a person after repeated exposure (as chemical dyes can also do). Unlike chemical dyes, which are usually blends of a few tested substances, plant dyes are very complex mixtures of dozens of naturally-occurring chemicals - so the chance that one of them might trigger sensitivity reactions is increased, especially since the process of extracting the dye is meant to concentrate the dyestuffs." Do you have a store that I can shop in? I don't have a store in my home.  My studio is a working studio - often messy and unorganized!  If that doesn't bother you and you're in my area and would like to stop in, please call me first at (802-899-3909). I might have an inventory of yarn to show you, but sometimes my inventory is quite low (such as during rug shows or workshops).