Episode 3: Small-Batch Yarn, Big Impact

How does your yarn come into the world? What magic transforms loose wool into lovely skeins and balls, ready to knit? “A mill is right smack in the middle between the fiber source and the fiber artist,” says Mary Jeanne Packer, founder and co-owner of Battenkill Fibers Carding and Spinning Mill. Battenkill is small enough to make yarn for individual farms and fiber artists, but large enough to provide a consistent product—and jobs for 18 people in rural upstate New York. Mary Jeanne also co-founded a group tackling one of the lesser known obstacles to making American yarn: scouring or washing wool before it’s spun into yarn. Skein by skein, Battenkill Fibers supports farms, small yarn companies, and fiber artists by making great yarn.

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