Blog Posts

May 2017 Newsletter

5/1/2017

The Shop in Blairsden

There is a new shop in the community!

The owners name is Pam Ayoob and she is excited to offer spa services as well as fun products. Be sure to check out her website, www.theshopinblairsden.com

Our dryer balls will be sold there and the option to add essential oils through this shop will be available and is a fun way to add natural scents to your clothes. The dryer balls also help dry your clothes 25 percent faster and are all natural.

2017 Farmers Markets Are Starting!

We are very excited to mention that the 2017 farmers markets are beginning this month and we are excited to see every one out and about! The Tahoe City Farmers market is the one beginning this month!

Tahoe City Farmers Market: May 18th - October 12th.
It will be on Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Commons Beach, Tahoe City.
Check out their Facebook page or website!

Romano's Farmers Market: June 2nd - September 15th.
It will be on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Sierra Valley Farms, 1329 A23, Beckworth, California.

Truckee Community Farmers Market: June 4th - September 25th.
It will be on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Factory Outlet Stores 12047 Donner Pass Rd, Truckee, California.
Check out their Facebook page or website!

The Sheep are Out and about!

The sheep are now out and about grazing on the range. They are let out of their pens in the morning and guarded by our trusty guardian dogs. They then return in the afternoons to get put away to protect them from critters at night. The dogs lead them around various portions of the property as they graze and always bring them home at night. The sheep are very happy to have fresh green grass.

We have a small group that stays in our enclosed pastures because their babies are too young to go out with the others. They are still very happy to be let out on the beautiful green pastures.

Gold Discovery Days

We will be attending the Gold Discovery Days this year at the State Park in Johnsville. We look forward to seeing you there.

Dates: July 15 & 16 2017
Times: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Location: Plumas Eureka State Park, Johnsville, California

Rotary Pancake Breakfast on Sunday the 16th from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Come join for fun activities such as gold panning, food, music, candle making, childrens games, wagon rides, black smith demos, assay office tours, period costumes, longboard skiers, wood working, Moriarty house tours, and weavers.

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

June 3rd: Treadles to Threads Spinners Guild in Livermore, California.

June 10th -11th: Wool Market and Fiber Festival in Estes Park, Colorado.

June 23rd - 25th: Black Sheep Gathering in Eugene, Oregon.

September 4th: Monterey Wool Auction in Monterey, California.

September 15th - 17th: CA National Wool Show in Boonville, California.

October 7th - 8th: Lambtown in Dixon, California.

October 12th - 15th: Trailing of the Sheep in Sun Vallley, Ketchum, Hailey Idaho.

November 5th: Southern CA Handweavers in Torrance, California.

We will update our schedule as the shows come up to let you know what is happening for us and the ranch!

Sierra Valley Art & Ag Tour 2017

We are happy to say that we will be doing the Sierra Valley Art & Ag Trail again!

It will take place on Saturday September 30th 2017.

To keep up on current news make sure you go and Like the page for the Art and Ag Trail on facebook!

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April Newsletter

4/7/2017

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Local 4-H Member and our Yarn

Jade is in her 4th year with the Treasure Mountain 4-H group. She is working on her project for the Plumas-Sierra fair and this year the theme for the fair is Art to Ag.

She is doing her project on natural dying. Jade came out to the ranch and we loaded her up with with Romney fiber: raw wool, roving and yarn to experiment with dying.
When asked , why did you decide on this project. She said because I thought it would be interesting to see what colors I could make and finding different things to make the different colors. She has experimented with sage, beets, black beans, lettuce, manzanita flowers, cottonwood buds, and turmeric. She was most surprised with the color that was made by using sage. She was expecting more of a silver color because that is the color of the plant but instead it produced a beautiful yellow. She was disappointed with the color from the manzanita flowers she was hoping for a pinkish color but instead a yellowish, greenish, brown was produced.

She will be doing a presentation on her project at the Plumas~Sierra fair this year from August 9-13th. We will follow up on the progress and wish her the best of luck at the fair.

The Pangora Goats Got a Shave!

The two pangora goats who we bought last year needed a hair cut pretty bad.

The two boys, Mini Oreo (Mo), featured above, and Jo were happy to shed their long hair and feel a few pounds lighter. We are excited to say that they both did beautifully but also that we learned that Mo likes to nibble on ear lobes and noses.

They are no enjoying having their own stall in the barn to keep them warm on these snowy April days and also getting lots of "special treats".

Mini Oreo (Mo) standing pretty after his hair cut.

4th Annual Farm and Garden Fest

Saturday May 6th, from 10am till 4pm at the Sierra Valley Grange in Vinton, California

If you are looking for ideas or local products this is a great event.

Come see us we will be demonstrating how to make felted dryer balls. You can buy some dryer balls or a kit and make your own.

Lambs, Lambs & More Lambs.

As we near the middle of April we are starting to wind down with our lambs being born.

The lambs from January and February are more than happy when the hay is put in the feeder, they all rush it and even try to push their moms out of the way. They can be seen in the couple of pictures below

We have a couple more ewes to give birth until we are totally finished.

The picture to the right is a new lamb that was born at the end of march, being weighed. This particular lamb was about 10.5 pounds.

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

2017 Farmers Market Schedule

Tahoe City Farmers Market: May 18th - October 12th.
It will be on Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Commons Beach, Tahoe City.

Romano's Farmers Market: June 2nd - September 15th.
It will be on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Sierra Valley Farms, 1329 A23, Beckworth, California.

Truckee Community Farmers Market: June 4th - September 25th.
It will be on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Factory Outlet Stores 12047 Donner Pass Rd, Truckee, California.

Sierra Valley Art & Ag Trail

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March Newsletter

3/20/2017

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Warm Weather

We are excited to say that we have had some beautiful sunshine on the ranch.

The alpacas, chickens and lambs all got a special guest visitor from the neighborhood once it was warm enough. Hunter is a local boy who got to feed the alpacas, hold a lamb and a chicken and enjoy the ranch while he visited with family friends. He also learned how to handle the animals and how to take care of them. He had a very fun time.

Wool is for more than just Spinning...

A few months back a young lady named Miranda McFarland contacted me looking for wool. Miranda is a senior at Sierra Nevada College, majoring in Fine Art. For her senior project, she is working on converting her bus (Juanita) to mobile art van while focusing on sourcing material through her local community. Miranda came out to the ranch and I was happy to donate a car load of fiber for her project. I knew she had her hands full just getting the fiber ready to use. It all had to be washed, dried, and carded before she could even begin her felting.

Her first plan was to use the felted wool as insulation in the walls of Juanita. While Miranda started dismantling the bus, she found that the walls had already been insulated. So she decided to leave it as it was; now her new plan is to use the wool for felted rugs and bedding for the bus.

You can see more of Miranda’s work by following her on instagram @juanitasmobilegallery or checking out her BFA Show coming up this April 2017
Title: “in,sight.”
When: Install from April 6th-14th, Opening & talk April 13th 5:00pm
Where: Garage Door Gallery, Holman Art & Media Center, Incline Village, NV 89451
Description: “People gonna be good. Practice your awesome. Girl. Actually you know, don’t you?! Crazy people we belong! Understand the flow, dance to babe. Play you, for that feels good”…If you have read this subliminal message, you are officially invited to “in,sight.”

Miranda laying in some of the fiber.

A tree was used to help with the drying process for the fiber.

Not able to attend Interweave Yarn Festival

We are sorry to announce that we will not be able to attend the interweave Yarn Festival in Loveland, Colorado.

We are still lambing here on the ranch and can not get away from our animals.

We still encourage anyone who can attend should and enjoy the other vendors!

Sierra Valley Art and Ag Trail 2017

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

March 30th - April 2nd: Interweave Yarn Fest in Loveland, Colorado. -Not Attending

June 3rd: Treadles to Threads Spinners Guild in Livermore, California.

June 10th -11th: Wool Market and Fiber Festival in Estes Park, Colorado.

June 23rd - 25th: Black Sheep Gathering in Eugene, Oregon.

September 4th: Monterey Wool Auction in Monterey, California.

September 15th - 17th: CA National Wool Show in Boonville, California.

October 7th - 8th: Lambtown in Dixon, California.

October 12th - 15th: Trailing of the Sheep in Sun Vallley, Ketchum, Hailey Idaho.

November 5th: Southern CA Handweavers in Torrance, California.

We will update our schedule as the shows come up to let you know what is happening for us and the ranch!

2017 Farmers Market Schedule

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February News Letter

2/13/2017

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Shearing is Done!

We managed to accomplish shearing this year for over 70 Ewes.
The weather was not as cooperative as we would have liked but we made it work. We had one good day with beautiful sunshine but the other 2 were a bit gloomy and cold.
It took 3 days to get every one's hair cut done.

We will have a nice selection of fine wool fleeces and some stunning luster long wool fleeces both white and natural colored and a few variegated ones too. We did not open our ranch up to the public for shearing this year. With all the rain and snow it has made our road into the ranch impassable at times. So we felt that it would be best to have only the family and a couple of the local spinning gals helping this year. It has been 20 years since we have had a winter like this and I can’t ever remember so much flooding here in the Sierra Valley.

These ewes were happy to get all of that wool off and are ready to have their babies!

The driveway into the ranch became flooded over.

We put all of the ewes and other sheep in the barns with dry bedding for a week prior to shearing. Not only were they we most of the sheep had icicles hanging from their long locks of wool. Some of the fleeces were still wet when they came off at shearing. Those fleeces have to be unrolled onto skirting tables where heaters and fans help dry the fleeces.

This was the first and I hope last year that our ranch experienced some wool rot in our fine wool fleeces (green and peach colored wool) on the sides of the bellies and right between the shoulder blades. They just never really dried out. With all the wool on them they were very comfortable sleeping outside under the trees. They were not seeking the shelter of the barns.
As we get the fleeces dried, skirted, and weighted we will add them to our website www.annagotwool.com so keep checking for that perfect fleece you have been looking for.

The ewes and Anna enjoying the warm sunshine outside of the barn. The ewes were waiting for some food as well.

Lambs, Lambs, and more Lambs!

We are in full swing with lambing.

We have had 47 Lambs so far and are only half way through lambing.

Every time we turn around we have a new baby on the ground.

The mothers are doing well with their babies and many babies are itching to have some good weather to get out of the barns and be able to frolic.

Check out our facebook for more pictures and videos of the lambs playing around.

How Do We Know Our Wool's Not Scratchy?

Here are some of my Rambouillet replacement ewe lambs.

I sent in 24 wool samples for micron testing at YoCom McColl in Colorado.

All of the samples but two were less than 22 microns. They were 22.3 and 22.6 so they were close. For our ranch I was pleased.

The Rambouillet’s range in fiber diameter is 18.5 to 24.5 In general a micron count below 22 is fine enough to wear next to the skin and not be scratchy.

So what is a micron? A micron (micrometer) is the measurement used to express the diameter of wool fibers.

Fiber diameter is the most important characteristic of wool in determining its greasy value.

It is also one of the tools producers use in helping them to select their replacements to keep improving the genetics of their herd.

We will have a nice selection of fine wool fleeces this coming year.

Interweave Yarn Fest: March 30th - April 2nd

We will be attending the Interweave Yarn Fest in Loveland Colorado this year from March 30th to April 2nd, 2017.

The location is at the Embassy Suites Hotel this year and hotel rooms are available to book with a discount!

There will be plenty of workshops to enjoy and many vendors. We hope to see you visiting us and the others so go ahead and get your passes and come have a good time.

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

March 30th - April 2nd: Interweave Yarn Fest in Loveland, Colorado.

June 3rd: Treadles to Threads Spinners Guild in Livermore, California.

June 10th -11th: Wool Market and Fiber Festival in Estes Park, Colorado.

June 23rd - 25th: Black Sheep Gathering in Eugene, Oregon.

September 4th: Monterey Wool Auction in Monterey, California.

September 15th - 17th: CA National Wool Show in Boonville, California.

October 7th - 8th: Lambtown in Dixon, California.

October 12th - 15th: Trailing of the Sheep in Sun Vallley, Ketchum, Hailey Idaho.

October 14th - 15th: Mt. Lassen Fiber Guild's Fiber Fusion

November 5th: Southern CA Handweavers in Torrance, California.

We will update our schedule as the shows come up to let you know what is happening for us and the ranch!

2017 Farmer Market Schedule

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January News Letter

1/12/2017

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Happy New Year!

We are now in 2017!

Here at the Ranch we felt like 2016 just flew by us and are excited for a new year and new adventures!

We want to wish everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!

Our Newest Addition!

We have added a new guard dog to the ranch.
He is a maremma sheep dog mixed with anatolian shepherd and great pyrenees.
We just got him about a week ago and we are in love and he is already starting to protect his sheep!
We look forward to watching him grow.

Weather Woes!

We have had a crazy January winter lately. It went from snowing about 2 feet to a downpour of rain for a day and a half.

Our driveway flooded as well as many other areas of the ranch. It then went back to snowing again. The last time we had weather like this was in 2005.

The animals are all looking for dry spaces in the barns and keeping warm by staying together.

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

March 30th - April 2nd: Interweave Yarn Fest in Loveland, Colorado.

June 3rd: Treadles to Threads Spinners Guild in Livermore, California.

June 10th -11th: Wool Market and Fiber Festival in Estes Park, Colorado.

June 23rd - 25th: Black Sheep Gathering in Eugeune, Organ.

September 4th: Monterey Wool Auction in Monterey, California.

September 15th - 17th: CA National Wool Show in Boonville, California.

October 7th - 8th: Lambtown in Dixon, California.

October 12th - 15th: Trailing of the Sheep in Sun Vallley, Ketchum, Hailey Idaho.

October 14th - 15th: Mt. Lassen Fiber Guild's Fiber Fusion

November 5th: Southern CA Handweavers in Torrance, California.

We will update our schedule as the shows come up to let you know what is happening for us and the ranch!

2017 Farmers Market Schedule

Interweave Yarn Fest: March 30th - April 2nd

Meat Now Being Sold Online

In case you missed our last quick announcement, we are now selling our meat on our website!

It will not be shipped but will be available for pick up at three different locations.

If you want to see what we currently have, just give a click here.

Winter Farmers Market

We are sorry to say that we will no longer be doing the winter farmers markets in calpine.

There are not enough vendors or patrons to keep it going but we say thank you to our loyal customers who still came out in the cold to see us!

Now on Facebook

We are on facebook now.

You can see fun pictures and videos of what is happening on the ranch or send us a message if you would like!

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Update in our Store!

1/1/2017

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Meat being sold Online now!

We have recently added meat to our online store. We are very excited to announce this and hope that it helps in getting products that are usually only avaible at farmers markets in the summers also available for purchase during the winter.

We will be continously updating the meat in the store to correctly portray what we have available.

We will not be shipping the meat but will be available for certain drop off and pick up locations. One location will be our ranch, another the winter farmers markets in calpine and possibly a third in Truckee. These will all be scheduled meetings and times.

To view our current selection of lamb just visit our online store!

When ordering Lamb, make sure to use our coupon code LAMBPICKUP to have shipping removed on purchases of lamb.

LAMB PRICE LIST

Boneless Leg $12.99 per pound
Leg Steaks $12.49 per pound
Shoulder Roast $10.49 per pound
Boneless Shoulder $12.49 per pound
Shoulder Chops $12.49 per pound
Neck Slices $7.99 per pound
Loin Chops $19.99 per pound
Rib Chops $17.99 per pound
Rack of Lamb $18.75 per pound
Whole Lamb $10.00 per pound

Sunday January 8th, 2016

Farmers market at 151 county road in Calpine,Ca.

Don't forget to come see us at the winter farmers market.

It is the perfect time to pick up your meat! :)

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December 2016 News

12/20/2016

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Winter Farmers Market

We have picked up a winter farmers market in Calpine, Ca at 131 County Road. We will be selling lamb, blankets, yarn, and soaps.

The next market is on January 8th 2017.

If you would like to check out the Indoor Winter farmers market website here is the link: www.sierrafreshfood.weebly.com

Dj is our local reindeer.

Shearing 2017

We are planning our yearly shearing! We have not decided on a date but looking forward towards the end of January.

If you are interested in helping and seeing how the process takes place, please contact us, we are always happy to have some help.

Below is a picture of some of our wooly friends who need a shave.

The sheep are always happy to have hay.

Facebook

We are excited to announce that we are on facebook now as Anna's Got Wool.

Please check us out and give us a like.

Callie and one of our guard dogs.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from our Ranching family to yours!

We hope that every one enjoys their holidays.

The two guard dogs staying warm in the cold weather.

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April 2016 Newsletter - Farm News, Fiber Shows & Farmers Markets

4/23/2016

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Rainy and Snowy Season

We are so thankful for all the snow and rain that came this season. It started late into the fall and continued through the winter months.

The temperatures were not so cold that we couldn’t bare it and the snow was a welcome sight. We have water running and flooding meadows that have not been watered like that in years.

Spring is here now in the Sierra Valley. It is such a beautiful emerald green. The wildflowers: yellow meadow buttercups, white sierra valley stars and purple violets are in full bloom.

107 Lambs This Year!

We are finished lambing this year with 107 lambs.

The ewes and lambs are out feeding on the nice sweet tender grasses and clovers.

Our two guardian dogs keep a watchful eye on all of them.

Protecting them from the predators of the valley or any stray dogs or people.

School Groups and Girl Scouts

We have had several school groups and girlscout troops out to the farm this spring. Paul Douville’s 6th grade class from Downieville got a firsthand experience in sheep and wool production.

They were all so eager to feel the lamb and were amazed at how soft she was. Imelda was lucky enough to have an early lunch.

They learned how to care for the animals and how to use the fiber each animal gives us from felting to spinning. They said it looks easier than it is. That is to spin the wool into yarn.

The Sheep Are Shorn

All of our sheep have been shorn and we are finishing up the final skirting of all our fleeces. This year we produced close to 1200 pounds of fiber. Some of the nicest wool yet. Strong, excellent length and lots of luster. We have several spotted sheep black and white fine wool fleeces this year. We will start adding the 2016 fleeces to our web page for purchase. So keep checking for that perfect fleece for your special project whether it is spinning, felting or weaving. If there is a particular fleece that you need let us know and we can help pick the right one for you. You are always welcome to visit the Wool Room on the ranch.

2016 Fiber Show Schedule

Spinning at Ratzlaff Vineyards
Livermore, CA
June 4

Wool Market and Fiber Festival
Estes Park, CO
June 10-12

Blacksheep Gathering
Eugene, OR
June 23-26

Monterey Wool Auction
Monterey, CA
September 5

Southern California Handweavers
Torrance, CA
November 6

CA National Wool Show
Boonville, CA
September 16-18

Lambtown
Dixon, CA
October 1-2

Trailing of the Sheep
Sunvalley, Ketchum, Hailey, ID
October 6-9

Ventura Co Weavers/Spinners
Harvest Sale
Camarillo, CA
October 22

2016 Farmers Markets

Sierra Valley Romano’s
Friday 10-2

The Truckee Community Farmers Market
Sunday 10-2

Photos from the Farm!

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15% Off Wool Blankets Through December 31st, 2015

12/7/2015

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Our December sale is on! Save 15% on our gorgeous handmade wool throw blankets. Choose from white, black, or patterned. We have both herringbone and basketweave styles. Use coupon code: BLANKETS15

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July 2015 Newsletter: Summer Thunderstorms | Farmers Markets | Gold Discovery Days

7/15/2015

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July is Half Over!
Here on the ranch as always a lot is happening. We have weaned this year’s beautiful lamb crop. I will have 3 new black and white spotted fine wool fleeces. Let’s hope there are no wool breaks. We will have to wait until shearing. It will be very noisy on the ranch for a few days until the ewes and lambs have settled down. Check out our current selection of black and white fleeces.

Summer Thunderstorms
We have been blessed to have a week of thunderstorms. So far no fires and a lot of welcomed rain. It sure has freshened up our range ground for the ewes. They will be able to maintain themselves nicely until we separate them into their breeding groups in the fall.

We had a little scare with our twelve and a half year old, three legged Australian Kelpie. He does not like the loud thunder. One afternoon he followed me down the driveway. He was picked up by a passing car about 5 miles from the ranch. They took him to the animal shelter where I was able to pick him up the next day. He spent the night in quarantine but at least he was safe. Rockie is quite an inspiration to me being able to overcome his disability and still love working the sheep every time he gets a chance. I am so thankful to have him back.

Fiber Festivals
Monterey County Wool Auction
2004 Fairgrounds Road
Monterey, CA
September 7

88th Annual California National Wool Show
Mendocino County Fairgrounds
September 18-20 | www.fiberfestival.com

Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival
Canby, OR
September 25-27 | www.flockandfiberfestival.com

Lambtown
Dixon Fairgrounds
Dixon, CA
October 3-4

Trailing of the Sheep Festival
Hailey, ID
October 8-11 | www.trailingofthesheep.org

SCHG Fiber Festival
Cultural Arts Center
Torrance, CA
November 1

Farmers Markets

Romano’s Farmers Market
1329 County Rd A23 Beckwourth
Fridays 10am – 2pm

Truckee Community Farmers Market
12047 Donner Pass Rd. Truckee,CA
Sundays 10am -2pm

Gold Discovery Days

Take a drive up to Johnsville for the Gold Discovery Days and meet Hope, our bottle baby.

Eureka State Park
310 Johnsville Rd. Blairsden, CA
July 18-19 |10am-3pm

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Forward>>

The Shop in Blairsden

2017 Farmers Markets Are Starting!

The Sheep are Out and about!

Gold Discovery Days

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

Sierra Valley Art & Ag Tour 2017

Local 4-H Member and our Yarn

The Pangora Goats Got a Shave!

4th Annual Farm and Garden Fest

Lambs, Lambs & More Lambs.

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

2017 Farmers Market Schedule

Sierra Valley Art & Ag Trail

Warm Weather

Wool is for more than just Spinning...

Not able to attend Interweave Yarn Festival

Sierra Valley Art and Ag Trail 2017

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

2017 Farmers Market Schedule

Shearing is Done!

Lambs, Lambs, and more Lambs!

How Do We Know Our Wool's Not Scratchy?​

Interweave Yarn Fest: March 30th - April 2nd

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

2017 Farmer Market Schedule

Happy New Year!

Our Newest Addition!

Weather Woes!

2017 Fiber Show Schedule

2017 Farmers Market Schedule

Interweave Yarn Fest: March 30th - April 2nd

Meat Now Being Sold Online

Winter Farmers Market

Now on Facebook

Meat being sold Online now!

Sunday January 8th, 2016

Winter Farmers Market

Shearing 2017

Facebook

Merry Christmas

Rainy and Snowy Season

107 Lambs This Year!

School Groups and Girl Scouts

The Sheep Are Shorn

2016 Fiber Show Schedule

2016 Farmers Markets

Photos from the Farm!

Our December sale is on! Save 15% on our gorgeous handmade wool throw blankets. Choose from white, black, or patterned. We have both herringbone and basketweave styles. Use coupon code: BLANKETS15

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How Do We Know Our Wool's Not Scratchy?