Year End Reflections

The Future of Seawall Fibres

Well, our newborn indy dyer company has been in business for 6 months and we thought it was time
for a little reflection.

First, to those who have supported us in so many ways, thank you, thank you, thank you!!
To say that Seawall Fibres has been successful beyond my wildest dreams would be an understatement since even I don’t have dreams anywhere as wild as this!

We have sold much more than we thought possible and we now have more than 700 followers on
Instagram and over 60 members of our Ravelry group.

Our baby is growing!

Probably the most gratifying is the 30 five star reviews we have on Etsy.

We are now shipping orders all over the world! Thank you internet!

Several retailers have asked to carry our yarn in their stores and we have collaborated with several
designers.

There have been some growing pains but all in all we are very proud of what we’ve done and
especially the product we have presented to you.

All of this has caused us to reflect on our original goals and what we want to see in the future.
Initially, we wanted to be a small, niche company. Now, we see that we could be a much larger
company. But we have decided to stay small.

The Original Seawall Fire Agate Trio

I started Seawall Fibres because I love knitting, I love dying yarn and I love knitters. I wouldn’t have
nearly as much fun administering others and I would lose contact with you- my customers and friends.  It is so much fun reading your comments on instagram and communicating directly with you via the ravelry threads and I would never want to give that up.

Our Malachite Trio on Pumice

But the realities of being small mean that we can’t be all things to all people. We are in a fashion driven market where colours change and we have to reflect that and the only way to do that is to constantly introduce new colours and retire some others. There are a few colourways that have proven to be extremely popular and we will keep these going forward. For instance, our Fundy Storm pretty much sells out every time we dye it.

So you are likely to see more “Sold Out” signs on Etsy and some colours will disappear. We are
considering a sale in January to kick this phase off.

But we know knitters and for some, a specific project may just scream for a particular colour and weight. So for you, we are going to develop “The Yarn Barn” which will be hosted on our blog www.seawallfibres.blogspot.com. Here, you will find all our discontinued products and if you really really want more and are really really nice to me (ie. Order a minimum of 3 skeins, pay in advance and wait a little longer for delivery) I’ll dye a batch just for you.

Also, while I love all the great reviews, I really value your feedback of all sorts and so we are going to start a product feedback thread on Ravelry for this purpose. If you are not already a member of our
group, I would really encourage you to join. I promise you you will have a blast and meet some very
“interesting” fellow knitters (or hopeless fanatics as my father calls us).

So, for better or worse, we will stay small, capping the amount of yarn we will dye each year, doing all the dying personally and taking care with the shipping of each order.

The Artist's Mark on Digby Neck

Seawall Fibres Yarn will be available at one retail shop only- The Artist’s Mark Shop on Digby Neck, Nova Scotia (you really should plan a vacation to this area and visit the shop).

So again, thank you all for your support. I am a people person and want nothing more than to get to
know each of our customers and share with you the fun of our wonderful obsession.

We're back!

Well summer is finally over and what a summer it was.  We weren't very active on here and I do apologize for that.  But we were keeping busy don't you worry!

I had the chance to spend a wonderful month in the beautiful province of Nova Scotia, visiting with family and friends.  Any time I get to spend on the neck in Digby is wonderful!

We had so much fun combing the beach over and over again in search of the elusive (to me at least since everyone else seems to be able to find it all over!) amethyst, and even though it took the whole month I finally found some!  We found tons of agates and other stones and minerals....enough to keep the rock guy pretty happy all winter I believe!

We had some spectacular meals....oh who am I kidding, all the meals were spectacular!  Vickie at the Artist's Mark is quite the chef!

For years Vickie has been trying to get me out of my comfort zone in the studio and has goaded and prodded me to finally let go of my anal retentive and OCD ways and just let loose.  So this summer I got to turn the tables on her and got her to dye her very own yarn.  It was hysterical to see how scared and nervous she was....but after a pretty intense hand painting experience (yes she sat there with a tiny little brush and tried to get the dye to do according to her bidding....silly Vickie, don't you know the dye is the boss not you?) the inner scientist came out and before you knew it she was mixing her colours and adding a little bit of this and a dash of that and honestly came up with some pretty spectacular yarn!  Of course they are OOAK as there is no way I will ever be able to replicate what she did, even with her notes!  But at the end of the day everyone was pretty happy with the results and we may even have a budding indie dyer on our hands!

We ended our trip with a terrific whale watch....anyone who gets out that way must do it!  We had a blast and saw some very active humpback whales!

So much has been happening behind the scenes here at Seawall Fibres and I promise now that fall has arrived I will be posting more regularly and will get everyone up to date with all the great news!

I will sign off for now but check back in a day or two so you can hear about the wonderful collaborations we have been busy with here at Seawall Fibres.

And if you are itching for a yarn fix, there are some very yummy squishy yarns available online at www.seawallfibres.etsy.com and in the Artist's Mark store if you are fortunate enough to be local or in the area!  New colours are coming in the next week so keep checking in!

Ta ta for now everybody!

We have reopened!

Due to what we were told was the pending Canada Post strike we had shut down our etsy store and were waiting with baited breath to hear what was going to happen.

Well it seems like the two sides are back at the negotiating table and postal service is still going on so we have decided to reopen for now and just keep a close eye on things. 

So head on over to Seawall Fibres and check out our lovelies!  Also keep your eyes and ears open, we will be having a huge restock next week at the latest!

Also apologies for not having Mineral Monday for a couple of weeks.  We have had some family health issues but things should be back on track!

Don't forget if you are in the Digby area to drop into the Artist's Mark shop.  There not only will you be able to fondle the scrumptious yarn (yeah, we know you do that!) but you will be able to see the wonderful stones and minerals being cut and polished by the ever so talented stone guy and some gorgeous purses, paintings and wearable pieces of art by the amazing in house artist!

Mineral Monday - Amethyst

Good Mineral Monday all!  Today I want to talk about what is in my opinion a very royal gemstone, a deep and mysterious mineral.

Amethyst is a variety of quartz and its colour can vary from very light pink to deep violet with secondary hues of red and blue.

Why does it vary so much? Because amethyst is simply quartz that has been exposed to radiation or contains iron impurities or trace elements. In fact, amethyst can be made synthetically by simply radiating quartz.

Because of its origin, the violet colour may only be on the surface and the colour may even change when the stone is heated!

Nova Scotia amethyst tends to be light in colour but, as can be seen by the photos, may be dark as well.

Amethyst gets its name from two greek words meaning "not" and "intoxicated" from the belief that it protected its owner from drunkenness. In fact, it was often used for drinking vessels.

Here are some examples of some light amethysts we found on the beach by our home. 

You may not know by now but my fave colour is green.  Next to that is amethyst.  I find it so peaceful and elegant.  You can find some examples of it in our store and in the next few months we hope to have more.  It is such a versatile yarn colour, can go with so many different colours for that "pop" where you might need it. 

I would love to hear what you guys think....what is your favorite colour or mineral?

Mineral Monday - The Bahamas

For Mineral Monday this week we are going to do something a little different.

Some of you might not know but I am a transplanted Canadian who has lived in the Bahamas for the past 13 years.  I love my adopted home and am very fortunate to enjoy the beauty of life on this island every day.  I wanted to come up with a colourway that was a tribute to the beauty of the Bahamas.  

The Bahamian colours are turquoise, yellow and black.  The black color represents the strength and will power of the people, yellow the sandy beaches, and the aquamarine blue symbolizes the spectacular Caribbean Sea.   

I think I have come up with a beautiful representation of these and am going to do something a bit different with these colourways. Since they are a special group and not part of our permanent lineup (at least not yet!) I am going to do this via pre order.

The three colours are as follows,

Bahamaland, a gorgeous turquoise melding into a deep gold with black speckles

Bahamian Islands, turquoise and gold with some beautiful greens as well

And lastly we have Bahamas as One, a beautiful amalgamation of all the Bahamian colours, very reminiscent of our beautiful waters here.

All three colours will be available on a variety of bases so there should be something for everyone.  They would make amazing bright winter accessories and on the fingering bases some kick butt socks!

Check them out at our our shop and act fast as they will only be available to pre order until next Monday.

In other news it looks like there is going to be a postal strike next month.   If you are thinking of picking up some of our yarn is would recommend ordering asap so we can get it out to you before there are any issues.  We have looked into other means of shipping and will be able to use FedEx but it will be a greater expense and might not be cost effective if you are looking and purchasing a skein or two.  We will keep you updated here and in our shop announcements!

As always we love to hear what you think so feel free to post a comment and let us know how we are doing!

Mineral Monday - Obsidian

Picture yourself watching a volcanic eruption. A blob of liquid lava flies out of the volcano and lands in the frigid water just in front of you. After it cools, you pick it up and to your amazement, you find yourself holding a piece of black glass! You’re actually holding obsidian.

Obsidian is formed when lava cools so fast that the atoms don’t have time to arrange themselves into a crystal structure. While obsidian is most often black, it can be brown, tan or even colourless since the colour comes from flaky impurities frozen at different angles in the rock. It’s pretty amazing since the chemical composition is often identical to the pink granite that forms from the same flow.

Obsidian is found all over the world, wherever there has been volcanic activity but if you have a piece, enjoy it now because it is unstable and in a couple of million years it will probably become very mottled!

When obsidian fractures, it can form extremely sharp edges and because of that, it was one of the first things man actually “mined” to use as cutting blades and spear heads.  Obsidian can actually be thinner and sharper than surgical steel and is still preferred today for scalpel blades used in delicate procedures.

Capturing obsidian’s beautiful black colour is tricky because, since it is actually a glass, there is a  translucence that lets light through and creates a beautiful, shimmering effect. This is what I have tried to do with our Obsidian colourway.  If you have seen our yarn in person you will see we are not aiming for a single colour, I want to see the different tones in my yarn.  To me the depth you get the way we dye our yarn really pops when it is knit up!  Let us know what you think!

Mineral Monday - Bay of Fundy Agate

Bay of Fundy Agate

Through a geological quirk, The Bay of Fundy area of Nova Scotia has become world famous for its agate. In fact, there are varieties of agate found here that simply don’t exist elsewhere!

The whole north mountain range that runs right behind our Artist’s Mark Shop is a basalt massif that runs all along the Fundy Shore from Blomidon to the tip of Brier Island. Originally, it was molten and when it cooled, cracks formed. (Interestingly, if the basalt cooled quickly enough, gas bubbles got trapped before they could get to the surface and became “frozen” in the hardened rock. There are some beautiful examples of this in the shop).

Since nature abhors a vacuum, these cracks and bubbles eventually were filled by material carried by and precipitated from hot, pressurized, silicate solutions as they cooled. So agate is a silicate. The beautiful colors and patterns are caused by the different impurities carried in the solution, which change over time. Since there is a lot of iron in this area, you find beautiful banding ranging from black to red/ orange/ brown and even yellow!

Agate is so hard and beautiful that it can be polished and made into awesome jewelry and if you stop by our shop or visit the blog you can see some gorgeous examples.

Matching yarn color to this was a priority for us as we felt it was important to showcase the beauty that can only be found here.  Nature is amazing and we can only try to imitate it, never getting it perfect, but I think we came close!

Bay of Fundy Agate

Golden Flame Agate Trio

What do you think?  Did we nail it?

Check these beauties out and other awesome yarns in our shop at www.seawallfibres.etsy.com  and if you can, please pop into our store The Artist's Mark on Digby Neck.  You won't be disappointed!

Yarn and stone display at The Artist's Mark

Mineral Monday - Yarn bases

Well that weekend went by quick!  So here we are with another Mineral Monday.  Instead of covering one particular mineral I thought I would tell you all about the yarn bases we carry now.  Of course there is some rock talk involved!

We carry 4 bases at the moment so without any further ado here they are!

First of all we have our Metamorphic yarn base.

Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock types, in a process called metamorphism, which means "change in form". The original rock (protolith) is subjected to heat (temperatures greater than 150 to 200 °C) and pressure (1500 bars), causing profound physical and/or chemical change.

Our Metamorphic yarn is a worsted weight with 218 yards of 100% Superwash merino wool per 100g skein.   It is an 8 ply yarn that is super springy and squishy and would be wonderful for all of your winter accessories, including hats, mitts, scarves....the list goes on!

Next we have our Igneous yarn base.

Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava. Igneous rock may form with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive (plutonic) rocks or on the surface as extrusive (volcanic) rocks.

Our Igneous yarn is a single ply, bulky yarn with 76 yards per 100g skein.   It is made of 80% soft superwash merino and 20% nylon.

Perfect for those big chunky knits!

Now onto our fingering weight yarns!

First of all is our Pumice yarn base. 

Pumice /ˈpʌmᵻs/, called pumicite in its powdered or dust form, is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals.

Our Pumice yarn is a light and super soft yet strong single ply fingering weight yarn with 400 yards of superwash merino wool in every 100g skein.  When dyed this wool has such depth, it just draws you right in.  Perfect for lightweight shawls, sweaters, t-shirts....to be honest this is my fave yarn we carry!

Lastly we have our Quartz sock base. 

What do you get when you combine the strength of granite and the beauty of marble?  You get quartz, a very strong and gorgeous mineral. 

Our Quartz base is a fingering weight yarn made of 75% Superwash merino wool and 25% nylon. It is a soft, springy yarn that shows stitch definition really well. Whether you want long lasting socks or a well wearing cardigan, this is our strong, long wearing fingering base.   It will be available in multiple colourways and makes a great first introduction into the yarn bases we carry at Seawall Fibres. 

We plan on expanding into other yarns in the future including some sport and Dk weights.  Some silk and cashmere will be available soon!

Have you checked out our new Etsy shop yet?  There are some really beautiful yarns still available.  If you follow our shop you will be one of the first to see the new yarns in the next update!  

Also, if you haven't had the chance yet there are still a couple of days left to enter our big giveaway on Instagram.  A pack of 3 skeins of our sock yarn is up for grabs!  Don't miss out!

Mineral Monday - Malachite

Copper burns with a green flame.  I know this because my dad's friend Ted Lazare melted his glasses proving this point in the Mansfield Tavern 50 years ago (he was using the frames to hold the penny in the flame - evidently forgetting another copper trait - it's an excellent conductor of heat!)

This is important because malachite contains a lot of copper and that leads to its beautiful green colour.  It is so beautiful that it is used as a gem stone and to produce awesome pieces of art.

Malachite vase in Hermitage museum, Petersburg, Russia

Since malachite is formed by chemical precipitation it often contains amazingly intricate patterns of various shades of green, constantly varying from dark to light, creating spectacular colourways!

I have to admit I am quite partial to the colour green so I challenged myself to find a way to express this gorgeous stone in yarn. 

Malachite Trio on Pumice base

The three yarns pictured above make up our Malachite trio.  The variegated Malachite is supported and enhanced by the lighter oxidized copper (bright green) and the Midnight.  The three work spectacularly together but each are stunning enough on their own to stand alone.

What do you think?  Did I do it?

Mineral Monday

Happy Monday everyone!  Here at Seawall Fibres we are planning on showing a new yarn colourway and it's inspiration every Monday so you all can see the workings behind how we come up with our unusual colourways.

This being our inaugural Mineral Monday we decided to tackle our signature trio called Seawall Flame Agate.  This set includes Banded Seawall, Seawall Beach and Seawall Sand.

First of all a little history on the area!

Nova Scotia is full of iconic landmarks- Peggy’s Cove, the Cabot Trail- and the Seawall on St. Mary’s Bay is right there with them.

Think about it, 300 million years ago, if you had been standing in front of the Seawall, you would have been in Africa AND near the equator! Then the continents started drifting and eventually part of Africa slammed into Nova Scotia.

The seawall is a reddish brown area of sandstone sediments, butting up against the basalt massif that formed when part of the sediments sank to form a rift valley.

Today, the Seawall stands as a silent sentinel for mariners plying the waters of St. Mary’s Bay and creates a spectacular colour palette that changes with the position of the sun. In the early morning, it is dark and mysterious but in the afternoon, it is defiantly red showing all its details.

With our seawall trio, we attempt to capture a small part of the beauty which presents itself during a typical day.

We hope that someday you will be able to experience this awesome destination first hand but if not, this beautiful yarn will let you knit its natural beauty.

How do you think we did?

Exciting News!

Good morning fibre lovers! 

Before I get into the exciting news I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all for the amazingly warm reception Seawall Fibres has received.  We do truly appreciate you taking the time to check us out and we hope you enjoy the blog as we go forward!

Ok, so everybody ready for the exciting news today?  Here at Seawall Fibres we totally understand the tactile nature of yarn.  Yeah, it is nice to see pretty pictures of gorgeous skeins on your screen…but nothing can beat touching, squishing, yup even burrowing your face in a nice big pile of soft luscious yarn.  And knowing that, we wanted to kick things off with a bang and give one fortunate person the chance to do just that at no cost to them!  So we are having a giveaway over on Instagram where we have put our signature colourway up for grabs.  That giveaway includes 3 skeins of our wonderful 75/25 fingering weight in 1 of each of our Seawall Sand, Seawall Beach and Banded Seawall colourways, pictured below.  All you have to do to enter this contest is go to Instagram, start an account if you don't already have one, like the picture, follow Seawall Fibres on Instagram and tag 5 friends.  Sounds pretty easy eh?  Well what are you waiting for?  Follow the link above and head on over!  Contest runs until the end of the month with the winner being chosen June 1^st.  The winner will be announced on Instagram and the blog on that date. 

 

Other exciting news!  Our etsy shop will be opening very soon with limited stock so keep checking here for the grand opening announcement so you don’t miss out!  Until then, if you are in the area, feel free to hop in and check out our exclusive Canadian retailer The Artist's Mark.  They are an adorable little shop in Digby Nova Scotia with some real gems for you to pick up.  They carry something for everyone, whether you are into fibres, rocks, art, clothes, knick knacks…you name it, they got it!  Plus if you need it they are an authorized Addi dealer with a nice selection of needles and notions.

Coming up in the next little while in the blog we are going to start showing you some of our delicious colourways and tell you about the rock or mineral that inspired it! 

Till next time!

The Adventure Begins

Take an obsessive knitter, add a geologist and award winning artist living in a spectacular area and what do you get? Seawall Fibres- amazing, luxurious hand dyed fibres reflecting the   beautiful setting of The Seawall on Digby Neck in Nova Scotia.

Digby Neck is a spectacular slip of nature perched precariously between the rugged waters of the Bay of Fundy and historic St. Mary’s Bay- waters whose colours are constantly changing and whose world famous 20+ foot tides dramatically resculpt the landscape twice daily.

The imposing Seawall towers over all, standing as a silent sentinel to days long past, simpler times when local wool was spun and hand dyed. Her deep red sandstone contrasts with the grey basalt massifs and treasures of amethyst, jasper and multicoloured agates found in the sand and driftwood of the beach below.

This is the inspiration for Seawall Fibres- unique, hand dyed yarns reflecting the enchanting beauty of natural Nova Scotia.

It starts with the obsessive knitter, Lisa Pakosh. She decided that to get the interesting (or sometime totally crazy!) colours  she wanted to knit with she was going to dye her own.  So she embarked on a wonderful journey of discovery, learning to dye yarn, starting with food colouring and yarn she had around the house and graduating to acid dyes with beautiful yarn bases.  She had so much fun, coming up with interesting colourways that were so scrumptious  she couldn't stop squishing and cuddling the skeins. 

Move on to the artist.  Lisa's mom, Vickie Turner, was the one who initially taught Lisa how to knit years ago.  She had taken a hiatus from the needles but got sucked back in when she saw the beautiful yarn palettes available today that her daughter kept waving in her face.  What artist can not get lost in the vast ocean of colour in a well stocked yarn store or stash!  So she started again, dragging out old projects and getting hooked all over again.  But she too wanted specific colours that she wasn't always able to find.

Now the geologist. Lisa’s dad, Peter started to find beautiful agates and amethyst near his home and decided to become a lapidary- turning rocks into beautiful specimens and jewelry. One day he issued Lisa a challenge- produce fibres that captured the beauty of the rocks he was finding. The rock he had in mind was rare, Golden Flame Agate found only in a few spots. Having visited the area a year previous, Lisa decided to go one better. She would produce colours that reflected not only the beautiful rocks but also the spectacular natural beauty of the Seawall area.

And so Seawall Fibres was born. Each colour is named after a specific mineral or natural material found in the area. It has been a long journey and it isn’t over yet! After a lot of trial and error, we have a line that we are proud to offer to the world of knitters.

We hope you will follow us as we continue on this journey.  Lots of exciting things are in store......starting with the grand opening of our etsy store in a couple of weeks and an amazing contest to get everyone involved!  Right now Seawall Fibres is exclusively available at The Artist's Mark Shop on Digby Neck so if you are in the area please take a moment and drop in. We promise you will enjoy it!  And while you are fondling all of the squishy yummy goodness that is the yarn, Peter promises to commiserate with your husbands and non knitting friends and will keep them entertained!

Hopefully, you will be able to experience this unique part of the world for yourself but if not, our yarns will enable you to enjoy its beauty.

We are including a hot link to the blog for the Artist’s Mark Shop and we encourage you to take a few minutes and check it out. You will see our product on display and it may just trigger your next vacation.