Pinwheel Farm began as a dream of a spinner’s paradise, so fiber products have long been part of our market displays year around.
Wool is the mainstay of Pinwheel’s fiber product line. This amazing natural fiber insulates against heat and cold, is naturally fire-retardant and rot-resistant, takes natural dyes wonderfully, is resilient, and comes in a wide range of natural colors and textures.
Other locally grown animal fibers sometimes come my way, and I may incorporate them in my work from time to time either blended with my wool or on their own. Llama, alpaca, and mohair pass through my fingers from time to time. Products made from these fibers may not be available at all of our marketing outlets due to specific market rules regarding local production. Contact me for special showings or orders.
Silk is a lovely alternative for the folks who feel they cannot wear wool, but love the subtle shades of the natural dyes used on Pinwheel Farm wool products. For this reason, I purchase silk (unspun fiber and finished scarves) that I dye with the same natural dyes that I use on my wool.
Pet fur can often be spun into a very special yarn just for you. Not all dogs and cats are equally spinnable, of course. Breeds with wooly winter undercoats that shed out massively in the spring make the best spinning fiber, although non-shedding dogs (poodle, ShiTzu, etc.) can spin well if the fiber is at least 2″ long. It’s usually best to blend the pet fur with an appropriate color and texture of wool, since pet fur is often too warm if used alone, and pure pet fur does not have the resilience that a wool blend will give.
I only spin dog hair on a custom basis, returning the spun fiber to the dog’s owner as yarn or as a finished knit product. It’s not legal to sell items made from pet fur, so I will sell you my spinning services.
Plant fibers such as cotton and linen are more difficult to dye with natural dyes, and require different processing, spinning techniques, and equipment. I haven’t gone there yet.
