One measure of a true friend is the ability to give a gift that is so tailored to one’s interests, it was almost as if the gift was made just for you. I received such a gift from two such friends this past week and I must share exactly what that gift is here.
My friends, Jim and Paul, spent three weeks in New Zealand this past February and, knowing of my fondness for fiber, they (and Jim in particular) nearly risked life and limb (I, too, would jump out into the street if I saw a sign marked “Yarn” in the near horizon) to bring something back for me. For the last month or two, Jim had alluded to the fact they brought a sheep back with them. Part of me hoped it was true. Part of me didn’t, as I could only imagine the chagrin of my suburban neighbors at the morning bleets of a wooly creature.
What my friends did bring back was truly exotic and something I had not ever heard of before. Yarn, soft as cashmere, made from the New Zealand Possum! Purchased at Wild & Wooly Yarns in Auckland, the possum yarn, in a beautiful colorway merging burgundy with purple and olive green, was something so exciting and so unexpected — and of course, it comes with its own interesting story.
Apparently, after a botched fur trade deal in the late 19th Century found some businessmen releasing hundreds of New Zealand possums into the wild, the population grew exponentially. So much so that today, New Zealand is home to 3.5 million people, 50 million sheep, and 90 million possums. As a result, the government spends NZ$50 million culling this animal to keep the population in check. Instead of incinerating the carcasses, they are now used for pelts and fiber for textiles. The New Zealand possum is also responsible for approximately 70 percent of all New Zealand’s extinctions – they appear to be a hungry bunch.
The fibers that make up a Possum’s fur are hollow, similar only to the Polar Bear. The possum fibers are too short to make yarn on their own, but are successfully blended with merino wool and silk that act as carriers for the possum fiber. The finished product made with possum yarn is extremely soft, has a tendency to feel cool in warm weather, warm in cold weather, and will dry quickly if it gets wet.
The important decision I will someday make then is: What do I make with one skein of possum yarn? (Suggestions from readers are welcomed!)
In addition to the possum yarn, my friends also brought back a ball of handspun Perendale wool, in its natural color with some lanolin remaining. This yarn reminds me of wool I purchased a couple of years ago in Nova Scotia and with which I knitted a sampler scarf:
With a smaller yardage, however, I would like to knit something lacy that would look nice as table decor, or some other smaller home furnishing. Regardless, the natural scent and wonderful handspun texture of the Perendale wool is comforting and inspiring.
According to the American Sheep Industry Association, the Perendale, a long wool breed, originated in New Zealand by crossing the Border Cheviot and Romney breeds. They are bred to produce light, lofty long-stapled, medium wool fleeces.
And, as if the possum and perendale yarns weren’t ample demonstration of my friends’ sentiments and thoughts of me while on holiday, they sealed the deal with an awesome t-shirt featuring a sheep’s face in Warholian quadrants of color!
These gifts of fiber not only spoke to my heart and appeal to my love affair with yarn in significant ways, they are also the impetus for inspiration. Some wonder about our yarn addictions, our inability to deny ourselves “stash.” Just as clay appeals to the sculptor, paints ignite the painter’s imagination, so does yarn inspire the knitter! The texture, the yarn’s potential performance, and it’s colorways are all factors that give me many ideas, put me on the search for the perfect pattern that will bring a particular yarn to life in exciting ways.
Some may scoff at my addiction for yarn, but as the medium for my art, yarn – whether my own handspun or exotic imports such as that I received this week – all fuel my creativity and inspire me to keep making beautiful things.
