snàth handspun yarns
island handspun yarns and handknits
made in the Scottish Hebridean Isle of Islay
Snàth in Islay’s Scottish Gaelic means thread or yarn, and snàth-olan means woollen yarn. In a sense, this also relates to the threads of tradition, the continuation of the island’s long tradition of handspun woollen yarns using locally produced wool fleeces.
My wool and luxury fibre yarns are made mainly from wool fleeces produced on Islay’s farms. Fleeces are collected from local farmers and crofters then sorted, washed, carded and finally handspun by me on vintage spinning wheels in my farm cottage.
Reflecting the colours of the island’s varied landscapes and seascapes which inspire my work, specialist hand-dyed fibres such as fine wools, silks and alpaca produced by local/Scottish producers or small independent UK dyers are blended with local wools to create these unique yarns.
Unique handspun yarns or individually designed handknits may be specially commissioned. Enquiries are very welcome; please contact me using the form below. Unfortunately, due to complex export regulations yarns or knitted items can only be sent to UK addresses.
Thank you to all who have visited my blog after Kate Davies posted her newsletter about her forthcoming book of knitting patterns and more, “Inspired by Islay”. It was really fun and interesting to work on a piece telling the story of historic and current textile work in the island, and working with Kate was a pleasure. My blog has been a bit in the doldrums recently, but it’s time to pick it up again and update regularly. Do please check back soon, as I’ll be posting photos of newly spun yarns and other woolly projects as they are in progress.
