Ellen A. Thompson, Fiber Artist
Yellow Dog Farm, South Hero, Vermont
I have been an avid knitter most of my life. I love yarn! When we moved to South Hero, we decided to raise Angora goats to begin creating our own line of mohair blend yarns. Yellow Dog Farm began in 2005. These goats are sheared twice a year for their mohair fiber. Each goat produces about 12 pounds of fiber per year. This fleece is mixed with sheep’s wool to ensure the elasticity of the yarn. Our blended fibers are then mill spun into several yarn types. This mill spun fiber is then home-dyed or hand painted before being gathered into skeins. I do all of the dying by hand, some in solid colors, others painted with 2 or 3 different colors. The yarn that we produce is considered an exotic fiber. It has a great loft to it. Some of our fleece is also carded into rovings for hand spinning. A Majacraft Rose spinning wheel is used to produce the handspun yarns. Most yarns are two-ply sport or worsted weight. The yarn is then measured and skeined using an antique yarn winder.