Arachne Yarns are farm yarns. Much of the fleece used in creating these yarns has been raised and processed on the faarm. Some has been processed at a small local fiber mill, guarenteeing that each fleece is processed separately, retaining the specific characteristics of a particular animal. all yarns are hand spun, natural colored or hand dyed with plant dyes creating unique fiber that will make any project special. Occasionally, I come across nice bits of other fiber that is locally grown and processed that I will blend into the wool or spin separately. Because these are farm produced and minimally processed yarns, there are some things to consider when purchasing yarn for a project:
Farm yarns are minimally processed. This means that they are washed with mild detergents, not chemicals. In commercial processing, chemicals are often used to dissolve vegetative matter and 'grease' from the fleece. The chemicals used can effect the properties of the yarn. Arachne yarns are processed without using chemicals and therefore, you may come across some small pieces of vegetation. These are easily removed during the knitting process.
What you see is what you get. Each yarn is unique. The fibers used are from individual animals, not a 'wool pool'. Commercial mills take fiber from many different producers and process it together and mechanically spin it creating a uniform yarn. Arachne yarns are processed using fleece from individual animals or blends of a few different fibers. The characteristics of the individual fleece will vary from animal to animal, different parts of the same animal, and from sheering to sheering. The blending and spinning is all done by hand. Therefore, it is important to buy all the yarn needed for a project at one time. The yarns are not reproducible.
Color. Color is also unique. Many of the yarns are not dyed at all and come in the natural colors of the fleece. If the yarn has been dyed, it has been dyed by hand and a batch at a time. It is impossible to match one batch exactly to another.
I hope that you will give yourself the experience of trying some of these yarns.
