Retail profile Kaalund Yarns Kaalund Yarns handspun alpaca yarn
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aalund Yarns is a family run boufleece journey the tique fibre mill in the Sunshine fibre maybe dyed or Coast Hinterland. Back in the overdyed and thus 1980s we started hand spinning and helping to add those weaving and developing our unique special touches to hand dyeing techniques. In 1997 we the final product. We launched our own range of hand dyed also design our own embroidery yarns and from there proknitting, crocheting gressed to artisan dyeing hand knitting and embroidery yarns and hand weaving accessories. projects that compleThese days with commercial spinning ment our yarn. After many hours of hard machinery we dye and spin more yarn, work, the raw fleece that arrived has faster, with the same ideals of creating now been transformed into beautiful, beautiful yarn. Soft natural fibres and soft, artisan yarn. Spinning our yarn is inspirational hand dyeing are still the more than just adding twist to fibre. basis for what makes our products great. Our yarn has been showcased around We love the look of handspun yarn the world both in retail settings and with its undulations and nuances, so events. It is regularly used in publicawe have set about creating mill spun tions, competition and exhibition entries yarn from hand dyed fibre that emincluding in our own work featured in a braces this traditional concept, with previous exhibition at the Handweavers every skein being unique. Some of our Guild of America Convergence. products are fulled singles with a thick If you asked every one of us what and thin look, some yarns are plied, is the most enjoyable part of the fibre and others are just crazy, gorgeous art yarn waiting to be snatched up and knitted. Our yarns can be used for knitting, crocheting, weaving, abstract embroidery or textile art and our fibre products such as rovings or batts can be felted or handspun. So, what do we do in the mill? After the bales of fleece arrive, the fibre is sorted, washed, dyed (if required). It is then that the mill transforms into a kaleidoscope of colours. Armfuls of coloured fleece are processed through a series of machines which align the fibres. The fibre now resembles fairy floss like cob-web clouds ready for pre-spinning. These fibre webs are again further processed until the fibres are arranged (not necessarily uniformly) in a format that form the bases for our yarns. At each stage of the Jodie Inglis (L) and Jean Inglis (R)
Kaalund Yarns carder processing journey, you would receive a different answer. However high on the list is choosing the new colour combinations. I also should mention this is probably our most challenging and even frustrating process as we have so many ideas that we could not possibly produce every one of the colour melts that we dream of. Running our fibre mill is not a job, it is an adventure. Our range of yarn and fibre can be purchased at selected LYS, online at www.kaalundyarns.com.au or see us in person at selected wool shows.
Knitters’ Guild NSW Magazine
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