Warm yourself up with some winter woolies

If you're feeling the chill with the recent cold spell then we have the answer - beautiful handknitted goods, yarn to knit your own creations, capes, winter dresses and more! Below is a selection of the items we have in store, but do call in to see the full range...

'Swallows Fly North' a hat pattern from Yorkshire's to Dye For. Also available as a kit.

Yorkshire's to Dye For has some new yarns just in - including Aran weight Falkland wool from organically farmed sheep in the South Atlantic.  There's also some beautiful chunky baby alpaca and some very special cashmere and silk (laceweight).  There are plenty of double knit and other aran weight yarns too, all in natural fibres and all hand dyed.  Some yarns are also available using natural dyes.   Yarn is all sourced from local suppliers.  If you don't see the colour or type of yarn you'd like Barbara will dye some for you to order.  Hats, mittens and accessories are all available in the shop or commission something either for yourself or as a gift.  Knitting and crochet classes can also be arranged.  

Bobbin Around has a range of her beautiful cobweb felted scarves in store.

Cobweb felting is a process which creates a strong piece of work from only one layer of wool, which is lightweight but super warm. The result is finer than other felting methods . Naturally occurring holes are created -hence 'cobweb'- and are part of the attraction of this method. Olive oil soap to produce my scarves, which come in a wide range of colours and are priced at £20 each from Fabrication . This felting method produces a soft lightweight  scarf which can be worn against the skin. After care is easy too, just hand wash, do not spin, just wring out excess water and dry flat on a radiator.

On the clothing front, Ages of Elegance have some gorgeous winter dresses in store (and also make to order so no worrying about finding the right size for you) and Rowan Tree Designs has a variety of elegant capes, wraps and shrugs to keep out the cold.

And once you've bought all your woolies, we have something to help you look after them too...

Keep your winter woolies feeling soft and smelling fresh with Woolly Wash from LITTLE BEAU SHEEP. This gentle washing liquid has a high, natural lanolin content which restores and refreshes your fine woollens and other delicate fabrics. Perfect for this time of year.

Also made from 100% wool are the sheep dryer balls. Simply pop them in your tumble dryer and they will reduce your drying times by separating the layers of laundry, allowing the hot air to circulate. They also eliminate the need for fabric softeners or dryer sheets as they soften clothes naturally, increasing fluffiness and reducing static as the dryer tumbles. They are cute too : )

Spotlight on the Seller...Lorraine D Connolly Jewellery

I am a Yorkshire lass, born in Keighley and now based in the small market town of Howden, in the East Riding. I worked as journalist for many years before realising, in my late 40s, that I wanted to be a jewellery maker/designer when I grew up! Redundancy pushed me into making the move and I launched my business last year.

My jewellery is made in large part from fine silver clay, which uses silver recycled from the film industry and other sources, including x-rays! The finished pieces are 99.9% pure silver, with some sterling silver.

I also love the versatility and colour of polymer clay, which works well in jewellery, creating unique and wearable art.

I love to add texture and depth to my jewellery and many of my designs are inspired by textiles, specifically crochet and lace. Preserving the delicacy of the fabric designs, whether in fine silver or polymer clay means each and every piece is truly unique. There is no mass-production here.

 

My aim is for others to take as much pleasure from owning and giving my work as I do in designing and making it.

I love creating these pieces and hope that others will enjoy wearing them. 

 

Spotlight on The Seller...Yorkshire To Dye For

'Yorkshire's to dye for' started life as a development of my love of all things crafty and colourful.  Like many sellers here, I learnt to knit and sew as a child with a creative mother and grandmother.  More recently, I decided that I wanted to find beautiful colours with more variety and individuality than were usually available in the shops.  I started dyeing my own wool and natural fibres, using natural dyes and 'professional' synthetic dyes.  Natural dyes offer a range of colours not often seen and usually only available to people who spin and make their own garments and household items.  

From early projects in embroidery (anyone remember drawn thread work?) I went on to create sewn items.  Despite having to make an apron at school (no, they weren't fashionable at that time), I was particularly proud of a denim bag made out of an old mini skirt.  My grandmother was relieved to see the mini skirt recycled; it was very short.   

Eventually I realised that my favourite medium was wool and the relaxing process of knitting.  As a student I made lots of knitted garments and had a perm to go with the Dr Who scarf.    

I returned to knitting and learnt to crochet after giving up teaching full time.  The health benefits of these handcrafts is being more widely researched and there is now interesting evidence of how they relieve depression, reduce anxiety and recently, researcher Yonas Geda, MD, a neuropsychiatrist at the Mayo Clinic, completed a study that showed knitting is neuroprotective and may reduce dementia by as much as 50%. 

Here in Fabrication, I have a range of yarns available; Bluefaced Leicester (Aran weight), top quality Australian Merino, both superwash and handwash, and different weights available from 4 ply, sock weight, Double Knit, Aran and Chunky.   I also love the baby alpaca - so soft and hypoallergenic for those who are allergic to wool.  All yarns are sold in 100g skeins.  I also have wool/silk and yak and camel available.... (coming soon!)

People often ask why is the yarn in skeins and not in balls?  Because it is kinder to the yarn. Once made up, the wool will be fixed into the shape you choose.  If the yarn is wound into balls for a long time before you are going to use it it tends to put the yarn under more tension and 'stretch' it a little.  Wind it as you use it and the wool will thank you by giving you years of hardwearing, warm snuggle and protection.

I have two kits currently ready for winter - a chunky cowl that would be suitable for a man, and a Pixie hat in chunky bouclé.  These are my own designs.   I am also planning a sock weight shawl/scarf as well.

The poncho demonstrates how you can mix different yarns and colours.  The paler greens are dyed with nettle.  The bright colours are synthetic dyes and then the dark green and brown mohair are commercial yarns.  The garment is knitted with a cable band and crocheted border.  I designed it to be worn two ways, short or long sleeves. 

This chunky yarn is dyed with indigo.  It would look beautiful as a scarf, cowl or shawl.  Each skein is 100 yards long.  Did you know that indigo has natural insecticidal properties?  Combined with wool this makes the ideal yarn for socks, and accessories for walking and trekking.  Lots of indigo dyed sock wool available this autumn.  Think midges and Scotland....

I'm also involved with Armley Mills' heritage dyeing project researching and reinterpreting some of Benjamin Gott's recipes.  We hope to put on an exhibition next year, and the BBC came to visit in August for a BBC1 show about Gardens from the Air.  We're not sure how much of our day of filming will appear on the show but you might catch a glimpse of me digging up madder root (gives a pink dye, see the skeins of baby alpaca).