A Hopeful Hue, Local Wool, and a Yarnpreneur

This time of year, style forecasts and trend predictions abound. As a maker who chooses the slow lane, I want colors, fibers, and textures that are meaningful and connect me to a bigger picture. There’s nothing more inspiring to me than knowing that the yarn I am knitting was created by a talented maker who purchased fiber from a shepherd who is tending their animals and landscape. Now, that's a trend I can get behind.

Winter Inspiration

Earlier this month, Farah Knudsen popped up on my Instagram feed. Farah is the “yarnpreneur” behind Knudsen Knits and was featured in Farm & Fiber Knits 2024 (read the article here). I have loved following some of Farah’s adventures in tracking down great wool in Utah and transforming it into beautiful yarns.

In her quest to produce yarns near her home in Utah, Farah Knudsen found Polypay fleeces in storage. It was a new farm’s first shearing, and they had no established market for the wool. Farah bought the entire clip. Photos courtesy of Farah Knudsen

When Farah posted in early December that through the 19th, she would be donating $3 from every skein sold toward her local elementary school’s student lunch debt, I was thrilled. Seeing the good that this beautiful yarn was doing, extending its reach even farther, is so inspiring. I immediately went shopping and purchased several skeins. Farah carries many small-batch yarns, some dyed and some undyed. (Note: Farah's fundraiser has now ended, but her work with local farmers continues!)

My Pick for Hopeful Hue

Knudsen Knits Corriedale-Merino Blend Fingering in Moss. Find it here.

Color is so personal. To me, this is the green that lies just beneath the surface of woody plants. If you are walking in the winter woods among the bare trees, you need only scratch the surface to see the brilliant green of life. It’s a hopeful thought that I think many of us could use right now.

What is this color to you?

As I sit here handwinding this skein and dreaming about what it would like to be, I’m thankful for the tangible and intangible connections that knitting brings to my life. I’m grateful for the makers, the animals, the soil. May gratitude and community carry us into the new year.

— Kate

Find Knudsen Knits online at knudsenknits.com and on Instagram @knudsenknits.