Category: Flora Fibres news

New pattern: Falling Leaves

February 20, 2023

Falling leaves is a set that I first created back in around 2016, before the days of Flora Fibres and learning about the world of all the fabulous plant based yarns. So I thought it was about time that I reworked the pattern to be compatible with both my new yarn and also the ethos of my company.

I have reworked the original pattern so that it looks just the same as it originally did, but is now designed specifically for my lovely DK weight Tencel yarn. As you may know this is a yarn which does not inherently have any stretch, which you might think would make it unsuitable for a garment such as a hat for which some amount of stretch is obviously necessary to keep the hat on your head! However it works very well with stitch patterns which give it the elasticity needed, such as rib stitch and lace stitches, both of which are used in this pattern. Tencel is also a wonderful choice for hats and scarves as it is a thermoregulating yarn which will keep you wonderfully cosy when it is cold out, but you won’t overheat on warmer days. I tested this myself by wearing my falling leaves hat to my children’s tennis competitions this week. As the rest of me slowly froze as I stood there, I was delighted to find my head and ears were perfectly warm and cosy!

The complete set uses 2 x 100g skeins of DK weight Tencel, with 50g needed for the hat, and 100g (or more if desired!) for the scarf, and is knitted on 3mm needles. The pattern includes 2 hat sizes: small for a head circumference of around 51-52cm, and medium/large for a head circumference of 56-57cm. The scarf as shown measures around 165cm, but includes instructions for making it both longer and wider to suit your needs. The pattern comes with both written instructions, and charts, and it includes tips on correctly blocking a Tencel hat to ensure the best fit.

The pattern set is available in both my Ravelry store, and from my Etsy shop, and for this first week (until Sunday 26th February) I will be running an offer in my Etsy store where if you buy both the yarn and the pattern at the same time then you will get the pattern free*!

(*Unfortunately I can’t set my Etsy shop up to give the pattern away free with a yarn purchase, so instead if you buy the yarn and the pattern in the same transaction then I will manually refund the cost of the pattern. This was the best way I could think of to achieve this, and works out the same in the end!)

2023 Events

February 20, 2023

Hello my lovelies!

I know it’s been a while since I last updated this site, but I promise I will try to do better this year! And to kick things off here is a list of the yarn festivals I will be vending at this year. There are lots of new shows which I haven’t done before which I am very excited about, it’s always fun to go to a new festival!

I have also applied to other shows for later on in the year but they have not yet announced their vendors for this year. As soon as I find out if I’m accepted I shall update the list to include the new shows too.

Grand reopening!

October 1, 2020

Hello my lovelies!

So it’s been a while since my last post here, but never mind because I’m back again with a huge shop update ready for the grand reopening of my Etsy shop tomorrow! (6pm BST on 2nd October 2020)

Banana yarn rainbow

As you can see it’s a very colourful, rainbowy (is that a word? I feel like it should be a word) sort of shop update, whether you’re looking for just one colour or for the whole spectrum there’s lots to choose from, no matter whether you’re looking for Tencel, cotton or even banana yarn!

Tencel yarnIMG_20200928_134743

Speaking of choice I even have a brand new yarn for you to try out! This beauty is pineapple yarn, and it’s a gorgeous, eco friendly bast fibre, which means the fibres were peeled from the leaves in a similar way to linen production, and not broken down in a chemical extraction process. As a bast fibre yarn it will benefit from a little breaking in, the same as other bast fibres such as linen or hemp. But a little effort will leave you with a surprisingly soft yarn, making it all worth while.

It is extracted from the leaves of the pineapple plant, after the fruit has been harvested. What used to happen was the farmers would then clear their fields and burn all the leaves to make space for the next crop. But now we’re saving that plant matter from being burned, which is obviously better for the environment, and the farmers are gaining a second income from selling what was otherwise a waste product. It’s really a win-win!

Pineapple yarn rainbow

There will also be another brand new section added to the shop, which contains ready made, hand woven creations made by me, using my hand dyed yarns. It will include 2 scarves, a cowl, and 2 little bags, and I have plans for the next lot of new additions already!
 

And finally a quick note for the spinners and sock knitters amongst you: you’ll notice tomorrow that these sections are looking rather empty as I’m not quite done with all the dyeing yet. No need to feel neglected however as there will be lots of choice for you too, when they’re ready in a week or two!

WoolNEss 2019

May 15, 2019

Next up in this summer’s yarn festival schedule for me is the inaugural WoolNEss festival in Newcastle! (does this count as me going international…?)

I’m very excited to be a part of this new event, which aims to promote the benefits of crafting for mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. How lovely is that?!

The event will take place from the 2nd to the 4th of August (the marketplace will be open on Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th) at the Life Science Centre, which is conveniently located right next to Newcastle central station.

I’m very excited to be a part of this new event, and being in a different region hopefully it will mean I can get to meet some more of you in real life! You can read more about the event and buy your tickets for it here.

Aberdeen Yarn Fest

May 14, 2019

Oops, I see it’s been a while since I updated things on here. Sorry everyone! So now get ready for a bunch of information coming your way about upcoming events and exciting new products:

First up I’m delighted to (re)announce (for those who follow me on social media you will already know this) that I will once again be attending the Aberdeen Yarn Fest this year. It is to be held in the Doubletree by Hilton Aberdeen Treetops hotel on Sunday 9th of June, and looks set to be an amazing event!

I will have a whole array of gorgeous things to bring to the festival, including lots and lots of spinning fibre (braids and batts!), hand spun yarn, both my recycled and regular cotton yarns, and also some all new Tencel, and Banana yarns too! (More on those to follow)

You can read more about the event and get your tickets here. You will find me at stand 10!

Will I see you there?

Easily wind a centre pull ball of yarn (without a ball winder!)

October 4, 2018

Have you ever got yourself in a tangle trying to turn a skein of yarn in to a usable ball? Or chased a ball of yarn across the floor whilst wishing instead it could be centre pull yarn cake? But you don’t have a ball winder? No problem! Let me show you a really simple way to make your very own centre pull yarn cake using no equipment other than your own two hands!

It’s Christmas in July!

July 25, 2018

I’ll be honest, I do love Christmas but I genuinely thought “Christmas in July” was just something the Girl Scouts made up when I was doing Camp America some years ago! But it appears it also exists in Etsy-land so I’m quite happy to embrace the Christmas spirit, despite the warm weather, and use today to launch my very exciting new advent calendars!



Yarn lovers advent calendar!

The ideal way for all true yarn lovers to count down to Christmas! Containing 24 days of individually wrapped and numbered, botanically dyed skeins, plus optional extras, this is a gift to make this festive season extra special, either for yourself or for your favourite yarn addict!

This is available with several different options, depending on how much yarn you want (either 10g or 20g per day), which fibre(s) you would like (organic cotton, linen, hemp and tencel), and whether you’ve got space in your project bag for just a few more helpful extras!

The boxes are now available to pre-order. All orders must be placed by the end of September (but the sooner the better as numbers are limited!), and the boxes will ship at the beginning of November.

Spinners don’t despair: I’ve got you covered too!

These boxes will also contain 24 days of individually wrapped fibre-y treats, made up of 22 x 25g of botanically dyed fibre braids (2 of each of rose, seacell, mint, bamboo, tencel, soybean, carbonised bamboo, ramie, hemp, banana, and flax), 25g of mixed fibre rolags, and a 25g mixed fibre batt.

As with the yarn advent calendar, this is also a pre-order and numbers are limited. These too need to be ordered by the end of September and will be shipped at the beginning of November in time for the festive season.

Get yours here!

Happy “Christmas in July”!

Flora Fibres, Privacy, and You

May 23, 2018

In line with the new GDPR regulations coming into effect on May 25th 2018 I have updated my privacy policy. Please read on to find out how this effects you, and what I will be doing with your information (spoiler alert: nothing you weren’t expecting me to!). However if you have any further questions about this policy, please feel free to contact me.

Privacy Policy

As fans and customers of Flora Fibres Yarn I may hold some information about you (such as your name, email address or postal address). This information does not include your bank details or other financial information, as this is held securely by the processing companies, whether you are buying products from my Etsy store, patterns from my Ravelry store, or paying an invoice via PayPal. These companies never share this information with me, or anyone else, and for more information about each of these companies you can view their privacy policies here:

Etsy’s privacy policy, Ravelry’s privacy policy, PayPal’s privacy policy.

How I collect information

My mailing list is managed using Mailchimp, and by signing up for it you will be kept in touch with what’s going on in the world of Flora Fibres. You will only end up on this mailing list if you have chosen to sign up yourself (which you can do here), or if you have specifically asked to join the mailing list, for example by completing a “join our mailing list” form at a yarn festival. I will never add people to the list without their consent, and you are always able to leave the list at any time by unsubscribing, the link to do it is at the bottom of every email I send.

Whenever you place an order from Flora Fibres Yarn, either directly or through Etsy or Ravelry, you provide me with sufficient information to process the order for you.

The website provider I use, WordPress, has cookies enabled for this site to make sure your computer (or other device) is recognised if you visit here again. It verifies who you are, for example if you are a fellow WordPress user and are logged in to your account, or if you have commented on any of my posts.

Who has access to your information

In a word: me! As the sole maker, creator and all round business woman behind Flora Fibres Yarn I am the only one who ever has access to your information. And I never, ever pass that information on to other people. Promise. Not even if they say please.

When you sign up for my mailing list, your details are also held securely on the Mailchimp servers. You can read about their privacy policy here and also their terms of use.

When you pay for an order through Etsy, Ravelry or PayPal, they will also hold some information about you. You can see their privacy policies here:

Etsy’s privacy policy, Ravelry’s privacy policy, PayPal’s privacy policy.

How I use your information

When you place an order for a physical item you provide me with your name and postal address which I use to send your order to you. I retain proof of postage for all orders in the hopefully unlikely event that something should get lost in the post. The receipts, which do not contain all of your personal information, are nonetheless all stored securely.

I send out (semi) regular newsletters to those who have joined my mailing list. By joining the list you can expect to receive information such as previews of new stock, to product development, upcoming events and the general news.

If you have contacted me about any of my products or patterns, you can expect to hear from me using the contact information you have provided.

In the unlikely event that I decide to stop rolling around in big piles of lovely yarn and do something completely different, I will contact you first so that you can decide if you still want to receive newsletters from me.

How I store information

Mailchimp hosts details of all members of my mailing list on their secure servers.

I keep an electronic spreadsheet of customers who have bought products from me, and this is solely used for accounting and tax purposes. Only your name, and not contact details or any other information, is held in it (businesses need to keep sales records for at least 6 years). This spreadsheet is kept on my password protected computer, in my house and is not visible to others.

I have access to my Etsy and Ravelry stores, and mailing list, on my smartphone and tablet which do leave the house with me, but again these are both password protected and I never access your details on unsecured public wi-fi where security might be an issue.

Your rights

You can at any time ask me what details I hold on you, and I will happily give you full details free of charge. You also have the right to ask that your details be deleted, amended or transferred. And if you ever change your mind about what information you want me to hold on your behalf, please just contact me.

Flora Fibres 2nd birthday and new pattern release!

May 14, 2018

Woo hoo! Happy (business) birthday to me 😀

As I did last year with the Snakes and Ladders Shawl, I have created a new pattern to release today in celebration of another year in this business which I love! This year the pattern is very special to me, as the inspiration for it came from a very dear old lady, my grandad’s cousin Pat, who we recently lost at the grand old age of 102 years. She was always full of life, and had many an adventure in her time as a mission doctor in Africa (she wasn’t a missionary she’d like me to add, she always made a point of telling people she was far too naughty for that!). The inspiration for this shawl came from a gorgeous shawl pin she kindly left me, which I felt deserved to be worn with something as colourful and full of life as she was, and also my hands down, favourite memory of her:

The event took place a very long time ago when I was just a wee girl, and we were at my grandma’s house for the family Christmas dinner. Now my grandma was good at many things, but cooking was not one of them. I’m sure she started boiling those vegetables some time around the beginning of December to get them quite so soft and tasteless! And she was not the sort of grandma who would accept you not eating the food put in front of you. So my wee brother and I were making our best attempt at eating them, when Pat clearly decided she’d had enough of them too. She whipped a tube of Smarties out of her handbag, popped them open, scattered them across the table, and gleefully announced “oh children, you don’t want to eat that! Let’s eat Smarties instead!”

So in her honour let me present to you my celebration of life, love and family: the Smarties for Dinner shawl!

It is an asymmetric triangle shawl, knitted from side to side with yarn over increases. It uses several techniques including colour changes to create the rainbows at either end, some 2 stranded colour work to create the rows of colourful “Smarties”, and two decorative lace panels, one which represents the plates and napkins on the Christmas table, and the other the love and admiration for an incredible lady.

 

 

A delightful pop of colour to liven up any outfit and to remind us all to live life to the fullest.

It is knitted using Scheepjes Catona cotton yarn, and you can see the full requirements and purchase the pattern from my Ravelry store here:

 

Easy, gadget free, skein winding trick!

March 8, 2018

I just have to share with you all this awesome trick I learned recently!

Did you know that you can wind a skein of yarn using absolutely no gadgets? No need for a niddy noddy, or a swift, or even 2 dining chairs, this easy trick will let you make a skein of yarn using only your own arm!

It’s ideal for beginner spinners, particularly those who only spin on a drop spindle, as you can wind off your yarn without having to use any other gadgets. It’s also a great trick to know if you want to spin whilst out and about, or when travelling, as you don’t need to take any other equipment with you!

Let me know if you try it and it works for you!