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Hard Decisions

The wintertime is when farmers get to make some decisions about the upcoming year. Lately we've been chewing on decisions such as organic vs. conventional production, where to find an old row cultivator, and (again) what to do with all this wool.


This month and the next, our favorite wool mill is running a substantial sale on the cost of processing. And here we sit with almost 200 lbs. of raw wool. We haven't sold all the wool from last year that we had processed. It's hard (for several reasons) to begin stockpiling processed wool, in whatever form it takes.

Underneath the Carhardts, every farmer is a curious blend of gambler and believer. If the farmer shares his/her life with a spouse, it complicates that delicate balance. In our relationship, I am a hindrance in this area. I don't deal well with the "gamble" part of the balance. Perhaps I am the "governor" in this family. Or maybe just the drag!

So what to do with all the wool? Check out the etsy shop in the right sidebar for a few of our offerings.

And meanwhile, we continue to discuss...
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Comments

  1. AnonymousJanuary 21, 2008 at 11:28 PM

    Maybe you could sell some of the raw fleece online? I have seen it done from other farms. Depending on the exoticness of the breed $10+ a pound raw. This is untrimmed straight off the sheep. It's an option.

    ReplyDelete
  2. DEEP END OF THE LOOMJanuary 22, 2008 at 3:53 PM

    I have a few ideas, but don't know if they're any good for you so here goes and maybe it will help.

    I don't know if you sell on Ebay if not then try there.

    You may be able to offer the raw fleece to several Yarn shops guild, or schoolthat teach spinning, dying etc..

    During the spring you may want to have a dying workshop on your farm and have people come over purchase and dye their very own yarn.

    Or you could start a yarn a month club in which you sign folks up for a fee every month you send them yarn that has been dyed by you. I know that www.yarnpirate.com does that and I think it's very successful.

    I'm allergic to animal fiber, but I know alot of folks that belong to several of these.

    I hope this gives you some ideas.

    ReplyDelete
  3. LonaJanuary 23, 2008 at 8:29 PM

    Great ideas--and we're chewing on all of them. Thank you both for weighing in on the subject!

    ReplyDelete

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