Earlier this year we decided to make a few changes on our website and we have been beavering away behind the scenes. This has specifically been with regard to the information we provide about the yarns we stock. We value transparency and we know you do too. After all, is that not what making your own clothes is all about? To wear something you have made gives a vital insight into knowing where our clothes come from and how they’ve been made.
The quantity of information normally given to us as consumers is generally the same across the board when it comes to yarns and it’s fairly sparse. Things like weight and fibre content have to be given as standard but much of the rest is left up to us to guess. The more you knit and use different types of yarn the more you will pick up and be able to see and feel differences between types of yarn. But without seeing and feeling the yarn in person makes it near impossible.
So the first things we’ve added to each page to take out some of the guess work is how the yarn is spun and whether it has been superwash treated or not. Both of these details can fundamentally change the way a fibre behaves and should help inform you whether it is the right yarn for your intended purpose.
The second set of information we’ve added is all about the provenance of the fibres and fleece, and the locations of their manufacture. Inspired by the increasing demand for transparency in the fashion industry, headed by movements such as fashion revolution, we want to highlight where the yarns we stock are manufactured so you are able to make informed decisions based on what is important to you.
Some yarns you will find have more information than others and this purely depends on how much we’ve been told by the suppliers themselves. But all of our suppliers were wonderfully receptive to our questions. The most fun bit for us was hearing more about their histories. The over arching theme was that they all love their work, they have a real passion for their products and have a desire to deliver high quality yarns.
So how does this translate on the website? Now each product page features:
- A detailed description of the yarn
- Where possible a few words about the history of the brand
- Processing of the yarn: woollen spun/worsted spun/superwash
- Where applicable, the yarn accreditation. i.e. GOTS, Oeko-Tex, etc
- Country or origin of the fibre
- Location of the mill where it is dyed
In addition to this you’ll also find links to relevant blog post at the bottom of each page. These include yarn reviews, completed projects or Know Your Sheep/Fibre articles. Last but not least we’ve also added a new category to our main drop down menu through which you can now search for yarn by the following key attributes: British Breeds, Hand-dyed, Machine Washable, Non-Superwash, Sock Yarn, Organic and Vegan Friendly. We hope this will make our website easier to navigate to what you are interested in finding.
These changes may be small but we hope they’ll help you make purchases confident in knowing exactly what/who you buying into. By being specific with what we buy we can initiate important changes at production level and set new standards of quality. The more we ask for sustainability and transparency, the more we’re likely to get it. Buying is a power. Use it wisely.
Until Next Time… Happy Knitting!
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