Making ALL the connections
Pacific Knitting Retreats is very grateful to be a small and humble member of our Fibershed who graciously admitted me as an 'educator' when I came up with the (perhaps?) daft idea of developing Knitting Retreats that highlighted teachers and places in Northern California. Many of the Fibershed's values are shared ones with our Retreats - a strong connection to our local fibre 'ecosystem' - and finding ways to connect and share the rich resources we have here in Northern California among knitters. Rebecca Burgess has taken the nascent idea of a Fibershed and built a powerful and growing movement in a strikingly short time. She is herself a force of nature at this point in my humble opinion.
Brooke Sinnes of Sincere Sheep right here in Napa has been a representative of Fibershed from the beginning and her yarns are respected and admired by designers and knitters alike. Brooke and her fellow Fibershed luminary Lani Estill of Bare Ranch are great examples of how the values of conscious production and respect for an ethical supply chain can result in beauty and quality. Please explore these links and get excited by these projects, products and businesses of our fibre neighbors. They surely inspire all of us - and make my little knitter's heart beat faster!!!!
Brooke will be joining us at the Shetland in Point Reyes Retreat in October. As if that were not enough, she will be bringing her Fibershed yarns to our workshops dyed with natural materials harvested within the Fibershed .... imagine yourself surrounded by the magnificent palette of Tomales Bay, with yarn grown and naturally dyed within our Fibershed on your needles being taught by Mary Jane Mucklestone and Gudrun Johnston - two teachers who themselves have connected their craft and work to the exceptional environment and fibre community of Shetland. Not too bad, knitters. I'm pinching myself as the network comes together and connections become stronger. Truly my knitterly dreams come true!
In their incomparable way, Brooklyn Tweed is currently presenting the story of Fibershed and Bare Ranch, the inspiration and source of their latest breed specific yarn. Click to get the story - beautifully told and supported by Paige Green's breathtaking photos!
All the details for the Shetland in Point Reyes Retreat will be on the website in the middle of April ... I'll keep you posted! And in the meantime - here's a sneak peek from our Shetland in Point Reyes location!
