From the Pastures: Bridging the gap

Happy September! Always seems like the summer goes by so fast. It is nice to have a little cooler evenings. Great weather to sit out on the porch and enjoy.

My Shetland lambs are growing nicely. Their color patterns are really starting to be vibrant. I have a ewe that has white wool with black spots. I also have a ram with black wool and white spots. They are exactly the opposite. Interesting to have these two patterns in the same year. Another ewe is very dark brown. Her wool is staying dark and not getting lighter. It is difficult to get sheep with dark wool. A lot of them lighten up over time.

The mill has been busy spinning a lot of wool and alpaca ahead of the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival. I have several dyed rovings ready. Also, the felted Scottish Blackface batts with bright color combinations. Looking forward to seeing a lot of friends. It is always an exhausting weekend, but fun at the same time. I will be looking for inspiration for new colors to try in my dying. There are a lot of talented people at the festival.

The weekend after the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival our local Extension unit is sponsoring a farm stroll. Several agriculture farms are going to be open for people to visit. A couple vegetable farms, a therapeutic riding farm, a traditional grain farm and an agriculture museum are all on the farm stroll. We will be giving tours of the mill explaining how raw wool is turned into yarn. The entire event is a great way to educate the public about agriculture. We are excited to participate again. Enjoy the nice weather.