In the Mill – The Story of Seafarer
As you know, it's not happening every year that we launch a full, brand-new yarn and fibre tops range, so we're extra thrilled to be able to celebrate the what, where and how of our latest addition to the JAT flock – Seafarer – in detail on the blog today!
Seafarer's journey started quite a few years ago with Sonja and Helena getting intrigued by the idea of making a silk blend yarn. I've sat down with Sonja to hear all about how this new range came to be – grab a cuppa, and settle in for some yarny goodness!
When did you start developing Seafarer?
Hels and I have been pondering on the idea of creating a new silk blend yarn for a good few years now. We both love the handle and provenance of local, British wool and wanted to create a yarn which elevated proper woolly, local fibre with a dash of silk. Two years ago we started in earnest by testing a few different blends and specifications.
How did you decide the fibre blend – 90% Devonian wool and 10% Mulberry silk?
The fibre in our Seafarer base is a combo of our Appledore and Devonia bases with 10% silk. We love the pill proof nature of Appledore and the lustre and drape of Devonia, so thought both in combo would be glorious. The other added benefit of using both bases is it allows us to make as diverse of a colour palette as possible.
We create all our shades by blending solid dyed colours in specific proportions (see this vid) so by using the Devonia and Appledore bases we were able to have access to the most diverse selection of solid base colours.
How did you decide the spin specs – fold, twist, etc.?
We knew we wanted a Sport to replace our previous silk blend, Alpaca Supreme. So then it was just a question of the spec and how many plies (individual strands) the yarn should have. We tested both three and four and loved the additional drape and stitch definition which came from four. So this is what we decided to go with in the end. We’re really thrilled with how the yarn has come out.
How did you go about the colour development and then narrow it down to 25 shades?
Heheheh, this is always one of the most challenging bits of designing a yarn. Both Hels and I love colour, so trying to narrow a palette down is always a challenge. We always start things by inviting all the Mill Folk to have a go at creating some colours – the more the merrier.
Next it is a case of trying to find the heart of the palette and build shades which all work well together. As all the shades in Seafarer are named for sea monsters, it seemed fitting to really focus on blues and greens for this range. We then balanced it out with some warmer tones and some subtle neutrals. This range has also got a good balance of bright jewel tones and more subtle, heathered shades. Over all we are incredibly chuffed with how it has turned out!
Were there particular challenges in blending and / or spinning Seafarer?
Other than narrowing down the colour palette, hehehehe. Silk is always a little more pernickety to run on our machines. So this makes the yarn a little more tricky than our 100% wool offerings, but we love the luster and shine that it brings to a base, so it's well worth the extra effort in our book!
Thank you so much for sharing these glimpses behind the scene, Sonja! You can get Seafarer from September 26 onwards in both yarn and fibre tops – and if you're not sure which colour(s) to get, might I suggest a shade card? (And YAY if you are a Mill Member, check out our Secret Members page – you can already get Seafarer now!)
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