I thought I’d write a quick sum-up from Edinburgh Yarn Festival.  I was incredibly lucky this year to attend as a vistor and vendor too.  I drove down to Edinburgh on the Friday and spent a lovely day in the Corn Exchange on Saturday.  The market place really was incredible – so many very high quality vendors.  Apart from feeling rather overwhelmed and not knowing where to start, I had decided in advance not to buy any yarn.  I really struggle to find the time to knit samples and so on in Black Isle Yarns and I knew that if I bought any yarn (however much I’d love the yarn itself and enjoy supporting another business) I’d end up feeling torn about when to use it.  I did however enjoy buying some beautiful buttons from Lydnsay at the Border Tart, lovely knitting themed cards from Julie at Tillyflop and some new chiaogoo bamboo needles from Purlescence.

 

I struggle a bit with crowds, and while the market place wasn’t heaving it was busy, and I kicked myself once I got home for not having visited some of the stalls I really wanted to see…….next time! An addition this year was a huge marquee at the back of the venue which could seat 500.  This was a wonderful place to relax and chat and catch your breath in between forays into the market place.  I loved this extra space.

Meet the Shepherdess 2018

On Sunday I had a Black Isle Yarns stand at the Meet the Shepherd/ess event, also held in the Corn Exchange.  I had been really looking forward to it but was completely blown away by the response to my yarns.  I had so much fun but, my goodness, it was tiring.  Luckily Emily had offered to help out – without her I think the stand would have been utter chaos.  We were kept completely busy for the first 3 1/2 hours (of 4 in total) – we’d imagined there would be time to potter off and look at the other vendors (whose yarn I would have loved to have seen!)……but that simply wasn’t possible.

shetland and gotland Black Isle Yarns

Thank you so much to everyone who came past, chatted and supported Black Isle Yarns.  I really do appreciate your interest and enthusiasim, it means a lot to feel that perhaps my plans are not so daft after all!  I completely forgot to take any photos at all.  Huge thanks to Elin and Kate for sharing theirs with me.  And thank you so much to Jo and Mica, the EYF organisers, for putting on such an amazing show – and for allowing me to be part of it!

I’m really pleased to be able to share the latest Black Isle Yarns design.  The Erradale Shawl is a beautiful design by my friend Emily Williams – which is rather appropriate since she found the flock who grew the wool for the lovely Coulmore yarn (see this post for more information)!

erradale shawl undyed coulmore 4 ply

To quote from the pattern:

”Brioche lace suggests the foamy sand patterns left behind when the tide goes out, as rhythmic and soothing as the receding waves. Erradale is a deceptively simple knit, equally eye-catching in one or two colours.

Black Isle Yarn’s first-clip Coulmore 4-ply is a natural part of the Inverness landscape, from sheep that live just round the corner from me. It’s the perfect choice for a warm shawl with body and bounce, and shows the brioche off beautifully.”

Erradale Shawl by Flutterbyknits in Black Isle Yarns Coulmore 4ply

Erradale uses two skeins of Coulmore 4ply and can be knit with two undyed skeins, as per Emily’s original, or one skein each of two different shades.  I think either version is stunning.  The shawl is a simple brioche design starting from the narrow tip and increasing to the brioche lace at the end.  It is a good introductory brioche pattern – if, like me, you’re new to brioche then Emily highly recommends Nancy Marchant’s turtorials.

erradale shawl by Emily Williams in natural coulmore black isle yarns

I’m really looking forward to seeing lots of Erradale Shawls out in the wild in the future!  I’ll have a shop update on Saturday 31st March focusing on Coulmore 4 ply, with individual skeins of undyed yarn and kits with two naturally dyed shades, one of each of the two used in the dyed version (beautifully sample knit for me by Clare Shaw.  Clare is another lovely knitting friend and a superb, and very fast, knitter!).  The photo below shows a close-up of the two shades, the top is dyed with indigo over heather flowers and the bottom is indigo alone.  I love the effect of the two together – I think of them as peacock colours but I have heard someone else suggest stormy seas.

cof

I first heard of Coulmore about a year ago when I had an excited phone call from my friend Emily – she was just back from a bike ride, with a group of cycling friends from her son’s school.  While cycling along the shore near North Kessock they’d had to stop for a flock of Cheviots being moved along the road.  Emily started chatting to Maddie, the shepherdess, and discovered the sheep were part of an organic flock on a family run farm with land here on the Black Isle and also on the west coast near Ullapool.  Their land supports Maddie and her husband Neil, plus their daughters and families – Iona at Rhidorroch on the west and Bella at Coulmore here on the east.  They have been organic for many years (wth their barley going into Bruichladdich’s ‘The Organic’ whisky!) and the fleece from their Cheviots fetches even less from the Wool Board than normal, not organic, Cheviot.  Even allowing that the family do the clipping themselves, mostly Maddie in fact, they get very little return for their flock’s fleece.

Coulmore Organic Cheviots

All of this was established before Emily shot off to catch up with her bike ride!  I subsequently contacted Maddie and had a fantastic visit, meeting her and Bella, last spring.  They were keen for me to try having some of their fleece spun, not just because I would pay them a good rate for the wool, but because they really want to see all products from their land being well-used and, if possible, with added value.  I bought some of their hogg clip last summer – a ‘hogg’ being a ewe lamb which is being kept on the farm to be bred from the following year.  I wanted to keep the organic status of the wool and consequently had it spun at The Natural Fibre Company in Cornwall.

Coulmore Cheviot Ewes and Lambs

The wool was beautifully worsted spun by The Natural Fibre Company at two weights – DK (220m/100g) and 4ply (350m/100g).  I am incredibly happy with how this yarn has turned out, it definitely proves wrong the popular belief that Cheviot wool is only good for carpets.  It is a lovely strong wool but with a soft smooth handle and very good stitch definittion – ideal for lace designs and cables, and suited to anything from shawls to jumpers.

Coulmore Organic Cheviot First Clip 4ply sm

Coulmore Cheviot 4ply Organic First Clip sm

I am delighted to say that there is a full review coming, later in March, from Louise Scollay of Knit British, the wonderful champion of British wool – but some of the feedback I have had so far (from Louise herself, one of her testers Gem Davis {Gem has given me permission to use her swatch photo below} and Sarah Berry {who has designed the Comely Bank jumper in Coulmore DK, also see below} includes:

‘is really quite buttery and the stitch definition is lovely’
‘it was absolutely gorgeous, a yarn to be proud of and I think everyone will love it’
‘really enjoying knitting with your beautiful springy wool, it shows the stitch patterns off to perfection’

coulmore swatch by Gem Davis sm

There will be two designs to support Coulmore.  Emily Williams (very fittingly since she enabled the yarn in the first place!) has designed a striking shawl, with two skeins of the 4ply weight. The shawl can be knit as one colour or two.  Emily’s shawl will be released later this week and I’ll have patterns, and yarn of course, available at EYF.  The photo below shows a sneak peek of the two colour version which Clare Shaw beautifully knit up for me.  I have dyed up several more sets of yarn in these two shades – indigo and indigo over heather – for kits at EYF.

cof

Sarah Berry has designed a cropped jumper with fitted ribbed sleeves and a top-down circular yoke in the DK weight.  I can vouch for how pretty, comfortable and flattering it is to wear………..I’d be wearing it just now if I didn’t feel I ought to keep it pristine for at least a little longer!  Sarah has only recently finished her design and will have it test knit before releasing the pattern in the next few weeks (I’ll be sure to let you know once it is ready) but has kindly allowed me to share this selfie with you and an image of her original design notes and test swatch.

Comely Bank Selfie sm

comely bank swatch and design concept sm