Wee Ball Yarns

Here in the Bay of Islands, there are a lot of islands in the bay (duh!). One of the most prominent of these islands is officially called Guernsey Island, but it is known locally as Wee Ball. To me, it looks like a piece of something from another world that has been plopped down in the middle of the mouth of the bay. Tree-less and almost perfectly rounded, it sits, half submerged, alerting all sailors and shoreline hikers that this is not a typical place.

I love Wee Ball. I love its strange look, I love both its names, and I love how it changes in appearance day by day, hour by hour as it gets covered fog or stands out, clear as a bell, against the sky.

And since I love yarn too, I love that I can call my yarn, Wee Ball Yarn.

My goal for Wee Ball Yarn is that it be made from local wool and alpaca and dyed naturally, some with plants I harvest locally and some with other natural dyes, but all reflective of the colours of this place. So when you knit with it and wear it, you will have, quite literally, a piece of Newfoundland with you at all times.

At the moment, the yarn I made up for Doors Open is made from some local alpaca and wool from BC, which isn't local at all. Most of the dyeing was local in as much as I went to the local grocery store and bought the kool aid there, but it isn't exactly what I want for it. I am working on it.

We did have dyeing success with this:







Lombardy poplar leaves, soaked overnight with 1.5 cups vinegar, boiled 45 minutes. Mordant: alum. The colour of the photograph doesn't quite do justice to the lovely, sunny yellow that resulted. It's a keeper!

PS. There are still some skeins left from the Doors Open event. If you are interested, I can email pictures to you - mostly pinks/roses, some yellows. Skeins are $20 for 50g, $10 for smaller (approx. 30g). All proceeds support The House Museum.