Written and photographed by Kalie Ilana Cassel-Feiss Carol Lee Shanks has been creating unique sculptural clothing and wearable art since 1983. She curates thoughtful and intimate spaces for people to enter her world within her studio and showroom by appointment, or whenever she debuts a new collection. In a two-story building on a quiet road […]
Read MoreCategory: Wool
A Spinner’s Flock at Ewe & Me 2 Ranch
Written by Marie Hoff and photographed by Paige Green “Did you do crafts before you got into fiber arts?” I ask Bev Fleming, while looking at stacks of magazines covering subjects from quilting to bread baking to Christmas ornaments in her fiber studio. “Everything,” she responds immediately, without missing a beat. There is not a […]
Read MoreFine Fleece at Stone Steps Farm
Written by Amanda Fisk and photographed by Noelle Gaberman In the scenic Nicasio Valley of Marin County, Stone Steps Farm is a small, family farm breeding Pygora goats, mini Nubian goats, and Gotland sheep. Animals of all three breeds are friendly, gentle, and small enough to be handled and transported easily. Leigh, her husband John, […]
Read MoreLandscape as a Whole at the Hulsman Ranch
Written by Sarah Lillegard and photographed by Paige Green There is a term shepherds use for hill sheep that have become bonded with a specific area of the landscape: hefting. These sheep live and graze without fences by becoming bonded to a location. This bond is passed on each generation so that the flock maintains a […]
Read MoreFrom Sheep to Shawl: Family Fun at UC Elkus Ranch
Written by Sasha Wirth and Photographed by Kalie Ilana Cassel-Feiss It’s a bright summer day. Children are chasing chickens and sheep are being shorn. Lambs and baby goats wobble and prance about. The sounds of laughter and delighted squeals mix with the throaty crowing of a rooster. Around 300 visitors have come to UC Elkus […]
Read MoreChoreography and Skill: How Sheep are Sheared
Written by Marie Hoff with photography by Paige Green except as noted Shearing is that unique seasonal dance between human and fiber animal. It’s the act that offers us wool and fine fibers to wear, knit, and sleep upon. But for people outside the agricultural sphere, shearing can appear as a cause for confusion or […]
Read MoreInside the Shearing Shed with Kinkade Shearing
Written by Marie Hoff and photographed by Paige Green Shearing is that unique seasonal dance between human and fiber animal. It’s the act that offers us wool and fine fibers to wear, knit, and sleep upon. But for many outside the agricultural sphere, shearing appears as a cause for confusion or even concern. To learn […]
Read MoreShearing and Welfare: Why are Sheep Sheared?
Written by Marie Hoff Shearing is that unique seasonal dance between human and fiber animal. It’s the act that offers us wool and fine fibers to wear, knit, and sleep upon. But for people outside the agricultural sphere, shearing can appear as a cause for confusion or even concern. To learn more about this critical […]
Read MoreSoft Steps & Solid Heart at Rhoby’s Ranch
Written by Marie Hoff & Photographed by Paige Green “I keep getting interested. There keeps being more to learn, so I get more interested, and learn more, and the more I learn, the more I keep getting interested,” muses Rhoby Cook of Rhoby’s Ranch. Surrounded by oak and conifer trees, tucked in a valley of […]
Read MoreA History of Sheep Ranching at Madrone Coast Farm
Written by May Reid-Marr & Photographed by Paige Green In my first communication with Alison Charter-Smith of Madrone Coast Farm, she emphasized the importance of the farm’s location in Sheep Ranch, California. As you might guess from the name, this town of 35 has a long history of raising sheep, and an environmental and cultural […]
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