Estonia Adventures Part 3: Tallinn, Estonia

Estonia! The next 9 blog posts are going to be about Estonia. I know that sounds crazy, but the handicraft culture and traditions are so rich here, we just couldn't pair it down. Estonia is a magical place and we hope some of our adventurous blog readers might make it there someday if you haven't already been. Our first stop is the capitol city of Tallinn.

Tallinn is an extremely old city - first traces of human settlement date back over 5,000 years. It boasts a beautifully preserved medieval center which is known as Old Town and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We hardly left Old Town. It was so beautiful and there is so much to explore.

We had the pleasure of being in town for Tallinn's annual Medieval Days festival. As if Old Town isn't medieval enough as is, this festival brings local artisans and crafters to sell their work and includes events, demonstrations and more. We hit the market first and boy was it amazing!

Wandering through the booths we instantly saw and fell in love with Külli. She is the powerhouse knitter behind these amazing mittens. She uses traditional Estonian designs from around Estonia. Each village, island and region has its own patterns. She spoke English very well and was happy to tell us about each design's origins and myths (some are meant to bring protection or luck to the wearer). She even gave us some on-the-fly knitting tutorials for the unique faux-entrelac borders that are often used.

We each bought a pair of mittens and then went back the next day for more. They are just so beautiful! Picking out your pair is the hardest part and we spent a good hour or so talking to Külli, trying on mittens and obsessing over which were the perfect ones. Impossible. You, too, can obsess on her beautiful mittens here.

We want all the mittens!

There is a section of booths at the medieval festival reserved for master craftsmen. Boy, did we get into trouble there. Let us introduce you to our new Latvian friend, Aija.

Aija makes amazing yarn. She travels around Latvia and Estonia to choose sheep fleeces to use from local farmers. She dyes the fleeces using locally sourced plant that she collects. She then hand spins these and finally, different colors are plied together to create a soft, loosely plied, naturally dyed yarn. We each bought copious amounts of this magical yarn, all of which are in natural hues of yellow and green.

Aija is also accomplished at the craft of naalbinding, an ancient form of making fabric with yarn and a large needle which pre-dates knitting. Aija sold her naalbinded hats and mittens that were made from her handspun yarn...swoon! If you're into historical reenactment, you need to go to Estonia right now and pick up everything that Aija makes.

We also met Monika. Monika makes lovely handspun yarns in a rainbow of colors and neutrals. She was on hand to give spinning demonstrations to the public. Monika had met our friend Malia of Penelope Crafts in Amderstam the year before, and helped put us in touch with some women on Muhu Island (check back for more on that tomorrow) to teach us embroidery. (Thank you, Monika!).

Handicrafts are ubiquitous in Tallinn. There are shops in old town selling Estonian knit items of all sorts, but one our favorite finds, Naiiv, featured modern garment designs based on the traditional bright colorwork of Estonia. We knew we had arrived by the very cool yarn-bombed bike outside the door.

Naiiv designs leggings, sweaters, jackets and even backpacks with their colorful knit fabric. We wanted it all...

Thanks for being so magical, Tallinn!

Up Next: Embroidery class on Muhu Island

The Wharfie Cap Pattern: A Free Spin to Knit Pattern for Handspinners!

A new classic cap is here, designed by Amber! The beginner friendly handspun Wharfie Cap pattern will have you spinning your very own chunky 2-ply yarn to make a warm, woolly cap. (Even if you don't spin your own yarn yet, there is a commercial yarn variation for a knitting-only version!)

This handspun "barberpole" yarn is easy for beginner spinners, who shouldn't be too concerned with a little bit of variation in their yarn thickness. A touch of thick and thin to your handspun will add to the character of this easy-to-knit marled hat.

The unisex Wharfie Cap is a classic that looks great on everyone. Fold up the brim to keep those ears warm while working or playing outdoors on cold windy days, or wear it pulled down for a little more neck protection. This no-nonsense cap is all about function, but not to worry--when you wear it you’ll be lookin’ darn good.

The pattern gives simple instructions for spinning your yarn. Your hat will be one of a kind, and the real fun is in choosing the two colors to ply together for your marled yarn. Neon pink and natural brown? Hot. Charcoal and mint? Very cool.

Download the free Wharfie Cap pattern here. We hope you share your handspun versions with us! We'd love to see them in person or on our Facebook or Ravelry.

Happy spinning!

Tina's Handspun Magic Cowl!

Hey guys, It's me Tina, and my new handspun cowl! 

My new cowl is made of yarn I spun during Spinzilla (cough cough winners). I used a hand dyed merino roving made by our friend Meg of Sleep Season Goods. Meg teaches classes and sells her amazing hand dyed yarn and roving at FTC. This colorway is called Sleeping Beauty.

I can't believe it took me so long to cast on with my magical Sleep Season handspun, because it was so fun to knit with! When I finally did cast on, it went so fast. I was overly enthusiastic with each pop of new color. The cowl is a pattern I made up, and only took 400 yards of a sport weight single spun from my 4 ounce Sleep Season braid. The cowl was knit in the round, casting on 250 stitches on size US 10, 40" circulars. Using a larger needle really lets the yarn bloom and drape, showing off all the amazing colors.

I knit this while watching Dexter and it was done in no time which is a good thing, because the last two seasons were really dragging on. When I was almost out of yarn, I skipped to the last episode and started on my garter stitch edging and bound off. The perfect project to show off a beautiful handspun!

Thanks for checking out my new cowl! I love it so.

New Handspun Yak Yarn & Fiber from Rocking Yak!

Handspun yak yarn is here! This super special yarn is made on the Tibetan plateau, using traditional Tibetan spinning methods.

photo by Dennis Jarvis

The yak fiber is first gathered as the yaks shed their downy undercoat in the summer. Once the fiber is cleaned, it is spun and plied on handmade support spindles by local spinners.

By giving the spinners a way to work from home and stay in the villages, Rocking Yak empowers families to live a more traditional lifestyle. Often, members of rural families must go to the city to look for work. This beautiful yarn brings economic value to the Tibetan skills of rearing yak and spinning wool and helps to alleviate poverty in rural villages, allowing families a better income.

Some of the yarns are naturally dyed using plants that are gathered locally on the plateau.

Here are some of the lovely ladies who make this pretty yarn!

If you are inspired to spin some 100% yak down yourself--it is now available in our spinning section! It's unbelievably soft, sproingy and super warm. It's pretty dreamy!

Emily's Handspun Angora Aestlight

Some of you may be familiar with Victoria--Queen Victoria, that is--one of the cutest buns of all time. Victoria is my mischievous and fluffy English Angora Rabbit, my first and only fiber animal. She sheds all her fiber twice a year, and seems to shed three new bunnies every time! She loves my dog Branwyn and follows her around, eats things growing in the yard, and her favorite treats are stale bread, arugula, and dandylions.

Ever since Amber cast off her Aestlight, I have been wanting to make one of my own. And after playing and refining the spinning of my lovely bunny Victoria's locks, I decided that this would be the perfect project for my handspun yarn. I started by spinning Victoria's English Angora wool with the wheel, but the yarn wasn't quite right. I then tried my sweet little Turkish drop spindle, spinning and then plying little skeins one after the other. The fiber began to sing in my fingers, and the yarn was exactly what I was looking for.

After starting the shawl, a local "bunny herder" brought in her beautiful angora fiber, which we now carry in the shop. I picked out a gorgeous light peach shade and used it to spin yarn for a contrasting border, finishing the edging with more handspun Victoria.

I love it so much, and want to wear it every day!

And now, for your viewing pleasure, here is an adorable look into the life of Queen Victoria as she enjoys some park funtimes (also starring Eddie). Enjoy!

New Angora Bunny Wool!

Fluffy clouds of soft angora bunny fiber is here! This locally raised angora is from a small fleet of bunnies right here in Denver.

Natural Angora Colors: White  |  Tort  |  Agouti  |  Blue  |  Black

Twelve cute French angora rabbits owned by Peggy Pearlman provided us with this rainbow of five natural colors. Handspinners, this is one amazingly soft fiber! Angora is super warm and insulating and can be blended with other fibers to add a sweet halo to your handspun--or you can spin it all by itself for an amazing yarn.

Emily has been spinning some 100% Angora yarn in the natural Agouti color. She is knitting it into what will be a beautiful Shetland-style shawl with a lace edging in Tort.

Emily's handspun 100% angora Shetland shawl in progress

Her fiber came from her own adorable bunny, Ms. Queen Victoria. (Branwyn the shop dog's sister!)

Queen Victoria the Angora Bunny with her sister, Branwyn

They are best friends!

Better Know A Crafter: Amanda Pacheco

Several of us Fancy Tiger folks have Jared Flood's Rock Island Shawl on the needles right now, so we were all pretty amazed when Amanda stopped in wearing her finished Rock Island--because she had handspun the pretty lace yarn which she knitted it from! We love the long color repeats she got from spinning a hand-dyed roving.

Amanda Pacheco

What kinds of crafts do you do?

I crochet, knit, spin, dye, make batts...if it's fiber, I'm in. I love wearing something I made and I love draping my friends in handmade nomminess!

Tell us about your shawl.
Rock Island. I spun the yarn from Maude & Me roving and knitted it with support from Fancy Tiger. This was the finest yarn I've ever spun and the hardest pattern by far.

How did you learn to spin and knit?
I taught myself to knit and spin. I've been knitting for two years and spinning for one. My friend Caryn got me interested in spinning and has been my greatest support (and enabler!)

What is your favorite animal?
Any one that's spinnable. :)

Thanks Amanda! Happy spinning and knitting!

An Abundance of Locally Handspun Yarns!

Local handspun yarns galore! We've just picked up yarns and roving by local handspinners and hand-dyers. We love the texture and colors that you just can't get any other way. Meet some of our local artisans and their yarns!

Eat Agar by local handspinner Desiree is a delicate single ply yarn that is just a little bit crazy, with its tweedy mix of fibers and colors, and a few perfectly placed lumps and bumps.

Pinkilicious handspun by Pink is a chunky single with a high twist, hand-dyed in super saturated colors.

Sleep Season Goods by Megan features hand-dyed sock yarns and handspun yarn from wool that Megan dyes herself in gorgeous colors. Hey handspinners, we also carry her roving for you to spin up too!

Stop by soon to see all these beauties for yourself!