Do You Want to Feel Great About the Yarn You Buy?
Every purchase of Fairmount Fibers yarns — Manos del Uruguay and Baa Ram Ewe — supports the lives of female artisans in rural communities and/or sustainable British wool practices
Over the past few years, I’ve become much more mindful of where the things I buy come from. I’ve become much more aware of the horrible amount of slave labor that is responsible for many of the items I normally buy without a moment’s thought.
At the same time, I’ve discovered businesses that are taking a stand against this by being proactive in providing jobs to impoverished and oppressed people.
When a business goes out of its way to provide opportunities for people who have none, to pay them a good wage and provide them with benefits so that they can support themselves and their families, it makes me want all the more to purchase products from that company.
One such business is Fairmount Fibers, which partners with Manos del Uruguay as well as Baa Ram Ewe Yarns.
About Manos del Uruguay
The following quote, which once appeared on the Manos website (it has since been edited out, though much of the sentiment remains), explains the Manos del Uruguay mission well.
The Manos Cooperatives were founded in 1968, begun by five women whose goal was to develop economic opportunities for women in a country where there were, and are still, few opportunities for work.
They began modestly, by selling handcrafts at local shops and the annual agricultural show in Montevideo. In time spinning, dyeing, weaving and knitting became the focus of the Coop’s efforts. Initially the ‘faded,’ striated colors of Manos yarn were the result of heating yarn for dyeing in large, iron kettles over wood fires. Over the years, the dying process has been refined to provide consistency of color without losing what has become the trademark stria shading.
Continuing to develop its reach while helping to organize the working women of Uruguay both socially and financially, the Manos Cooperatives opened a showroom in New York City in 1976, selling knitted and woven garments as well as yarn for handcrafters. (This showroom closed in 1986.) Since then, the Manos Cooperatives have expanded to encompass 17 individual cooperatives, employing 350 artisans.
Manos Cooperatives employees receive health insurance, retirement pensions, paid vacations, and paid maternity leaves. We take some of these things for granted, but for Uruguay this was revolutionary.
In addition, the first kindergartens in Uruguay began as childcare provisions for Manos employees. Today there are kindergartens and preschools throughout Uruguay, so you could even say that Manos Cooperatives revolutionized the education system in Uruguay, too.
One last quote from the website:
With each purchased skein of Manos del Uruguay yarn, you will be helping a woman to support her family. Each skein is signed, so you will know who made your yarn, and from which village it came. You will be supporting the hand-crafted rather than mass-produced, and contributing to an economy where the workers control of the means of production. You, as a handknitter, crocheter or weaver, will be contributing to women’s careers in harmony with family life, and contributing to the landscape, and cultural heritage of Uruguay.
Below is a video that shows the Manos artisans at work! (Narration is in Spanish, though you can turn on auto-translated subtitles if you wish.)
Baa Ram Ewes Yarns: Supporting British Wool Sustainability
In turn, the Baa Ram Ewe website explains well their dedication to sustainable wool practices.
We collaborate closely with farmers, spinners, and dyers across the UK to ensure that our yarns are not only luxurious but also rooted in local sourcing and sustainable practices.
I highly recommend reading this entire page, if you’re interested in “seeing” a sustainable process of creating wool, everything from ethical sheep-raising to dyeing.
I was also delighted to read this, from their FAQs page:
Where is the yarn produced?
The British wool in our yarns is grown in the UK by British farmers that adhere to strict ethical standards and is graded by hand by the British Wool Board. It is then scoured, spun and dyed in the UK, with a small amount dyed by specialist dyers in Europe. We also source some of our fibres from other areas of the world where these animals are happiest – for example, our Alpaca fibres come from the Andean mountains of Peru.
I love Baa Ram Ewe’s dedication to the ethical treatment of animals and care for the environment.
Here’s Verity, the owner of Baa Ram Ewe yarns, talking about the origins of this effort.
How Knitters and Crocheters Can Enjoy Yarn That Makes a Difference
Obviously, Fairmount Fibers isn’t a charity. Nor are Manos del Uruguay or Baa Ram Ewe. But by employing artisans and ethical sourcing practices, they are still making a difference.
And we, as knitters and crocheters, can assist in this simply by purchasing yarns like Manos del Uruguay and/or Bam Ewe Ram yarns.
Every skein has been hand-spun and hand-dyed, and the Uruguayan woman responsible for each skeins signs her own name to it.
You can, of course, purchase both Manos del Uruguay and Baa Ewe Rams yarns at the Fairmount Fibers website. You can also purchase both at many local yarn shops.
Another option for Manos del Uruguay yarn is WEBS, the U.S.’ largest online yarn store. You can take a look at the Manos varieties available here.
And another option for Baa Ewe Ram yarns is Knit Picks, which you may know is one of my very favorite online shops.
This is a wonderful way to treat yourself (or a special knitting/crocheting friend or relative) to some luxurious, high-quality, beautiful yarn and make a difference in the lives of others at the same time!
