Aureus Flocklet Yarns

20/07/2023

New equipment arrived today.

These are English Wool Combs from Wingham Woolworks.

Hopefully they'll allow me to get the dyed fibre into a state in which I can sell it for lovely, stress-free spinning.

Check back soon to see how I get on.

10/07/2023

Trying to add a little more information to the website by writing semi-regular posts. The first one chats about why my small group of sheep is called Aureus Flocklet.

Aureus Flocklet isn’t really a name that rolls of the tongue so why have I called my small group of sheep by this strange name?

09/07/2023

I'm having to delay getting an online shop set up so in the interim I'm happy to pop the currently available yarns up here as I know there is interest in buying them.

Basically send me a message via Messenger and payment will be taken via PayPal once postage and packaging has been calculated. Once payment is received I'll post the yarn to you.

Skeins are £19.00 (GBP) each. This reflects the cost of getting it processed at the mill, the cost of supplies to dye it and a fraction of my time that I put aside to dye the skeins. We're not even touching on how much it costs to keep the sheep in the first place.

Skein colour will differ by dye lot - this is the nature (and beauty) of hand dyeing. I am currently dyeing in two skein lots.

All skeins are 100g but yardage varies by yarn weight; DK is 200m(c.218 yards), and Aran is 125m(c.136 yards).

If the skeins aren't being collected from me in person then there will be post and packaging on top of that. If it's being posted outside the UK then there's also whatever import duty you'll pay but I don't handle that.

Every order comes with a handmade booklet telling you a little bit about where your yarn comes from.

I know and love (and run around after) all the sheep who grew the wool the yarn is made from; in fact I have known them all their lives, so I can guarantee they have been well cared for.

See photos for the different skeins available - I've popped a written description too as I think my phone camera tends towards a slightly more red take on the colours for some reason (must get myself a proper camera....).

If you want to buy yarn from happy and somewhat spoiled sheep then drop me a line on Messenger 🐑🧶🐑

04/07/2023

The yarn and fibre stock have been in a large, tatty cardboard box for a while and I hadn't realised how much stress it had been causing me.

I prefer wooden furniture but for ease of being able to see what I've got, I bought this set of storage drawers.

I am now finding that corner of my living space much less stressful (also helped by putting the boxes of fleece into the Cupboard of Doom where I can't see them).

Things are in plastic bags at the moment as I appear to have a moth incursion 🤨 but hopefully that will be remedied once the moth traps and parasitic wasp (tiny things, not the aggressive, spicy kind of wasp) biological control turn up.

03/07/2023

Frazzled by a day of online training for the Day Job (another two to go 😬) so I decided it was time to top up the dye stock ready for more dyeing in the near future as it requires little brain energy.

Snazzy togs to keep my lungs and eyes (and clothes) safe. Mixing up the dye stock is a messy business but at least it's a colourful mess.

01/07/2023

It takes a lot of time and patience to build up this level of trust with sheep (humans are, after all, a predator species and sheep are a prey species) but it's completely worth it.

The sheep here is Pan, a seven year old wether (three quarter Cotswold, one quarter Lleyn). He's not a member of the flocklet, but is a member of the wider flock and he is the son of Aureus Flocklet sheep Vi.

He presented himself for cuddles after a hard day that left me feeling really pants. The sheep are very good at knowing when one of their shepherds needs a steady, calm and loving presence to remind them there is good in the world.

27/06/2023

Huzzah! The dyes I've been waiting for have arrived!

This means colourway number two should be coming along in the near future. I'm looking forward to creating it.

24/06/2023

Why is the base yarn called "Vi and Friends"? Well, let me introduce you to Vi....

23/06/2023

A limb has fallen off an ash tree at the bottom of the area the sheep are currently grazing in.

Sheep will actually graze off trees given the chance so I foraged some leaves from the fallen limb and took them back to the flock who eventually decided to eat my offerings once they were on the ground

14/06/2023

I did promise the big yarn colourway inspiration reveal and so here it is!
The first colourway of Aureus Flocklet Yarns is called "Queen Mab" and is inspired by the one and only Mab (11 year old Cotswold ewe and oldest member of the flocklet).

I have 4 skeins each of DK and Aran weight yarn ready to go - they'll be available for purchase as soon as I have my online shop set up (hopefully by the end of the week).

Skeins will be priced at £19 each (remember you're buying yarn from a flock that has an incredibly high welfare standard and also where I can tell you exactly who is in the mix and their family histories so worth the value)

I'd love to hear what everyone thinks of the yarn and it's inspiration.

13/06/2023

Once the yarn is dyed and cooled, if the dye hasn't been exhausted then I pop some Cotswold x Lleyn sliver (sly-ther) into the pot to cold dye and soak up at least some of the excess.

My plan is if I can process the sliver a little more to make it nicer to spin then this fluff will also be available for purchase. In the meantime, it brings me joy looking like sunset clouds.

12/06/2023

The final skeins are dried so I'll be revealing the inspiration behind this colourway very soon.