Circle M Farm

Yarn and hats and purses, o my!
I’ve been busy. Not as busy as I would have liked to be with Maidmarion Cottage Industries, but busy enough to have produced a few pretty things to sell this holiday season.

The problem is that the holiday season comes too soon after the growing season, if you are making things by hand. This year, I’m determined to make a ton of wooly products in January and February, when the only farm tasks are to plan for the spring. But I was determined to do that last year, too. Thankfully, I’m getting a lot faster at spinning and knitting. Hand stitching, too. And, I’m spending so much time sitting at my girls’ volleyball and basketball games that I can finish a hat every few days. Those games have been great incentive to finally force myself to knit without looking. The other parents continue to show great interest in what I’m working on, and whenever a ball goes rolling down the stands, everyone gets a good laugh tracking it down for me.

If you haven’t yet bought all of your presents, and you’re looking for a unique handmade item, you can SHOP THE FARM STORE over in the left sidebar. Here’s a preview of some of what’s there:

The Radish Hat

I decided to design a hat every year commemorating something that grew in the gardens. This year it’s The Radish Hat, a cross between a beret and a stocking cap, that covers your ears but doesn’t smother your skull. It is easy on the hairdo, and I love the sassy little root that sprouts from the back of your head. Most of these are currently in a gallery show at Mineral Point’s Green Lantern Studio, but I do have a few here to sell, and I can custom make one in the size and color of your choice. These are made entirely from hand-spun wool from my sheep. I can even label them with the name of the animal!

Wool Yarns

I’ve hand-painted this locally-milled wool in delicious colors for projects like socks and scarves, that require a bit of pizazz from the yarn. Also available are hand-spun, hand-dyed skeins for special small or heirloom projects. In other words, hand-spun is expensive, but it’s very very luxe. The special thing about my yarn is that my sheep are bred for softness, so you’ll find there is no itching. The hand-spun is labeled with the names of the sheep and goats that provided the wool and mohair, so it makes a great gift for a fiber enthusiast. Before I had my own sheep I thought it was the coolest thing to buy yarn direct from the farms that labeled the actual animals on the products.

Vegetable-Dyed Silk Scarves

These very subtle color washes are achieved with dyes from my garden plants: swiss chard, asparagus, purple coneflowers, mums, marigolds, beets, onions and cabbage. I also used tree lichens, kitchen spices and teas. I’ve got sizes from neck-kerchiefs up to shawls.

Woolcraft Classes
A truly unique gift for a fiber junkie is a class here at the farm. We do dyeing, spinning, knitting and felting classes cozied up by the fire or out in the yard with the animals, depending on the time of year. These can be redeemed by your giftee whenever it’s convenient for them. Children also love to learn here, and we can design a curriculum to accommodate any age and ability.

Happy Decorating and Shopping!