It’s that time of year when we all start thinking about gifts for others – and for ourselves. I’ll be sharing a series of gift guides for crocheters, starting with today’s edition: Yarn Club Memberships and CSA Shares.
Yarn club memberships and CSA shares are gifts that keep on giving. For the next month, or season, or year, the recipient will receive a delightful package of yarn in the mail, sometimes even including a pattern. These gifts are also great for knitters. (If you’re looking for options for spinners, many of the companies in the gift guide also have a fiber or roving option.)
So what are yarn clubs and yarn CSA anyway?
Yarn clubs are subscription services for yarn lovers. Many yarn clubs operate on a mystery model, where the exact yarn and/or colorway isn’t revealed until the package is received. Some yarn clubs are organized by a single yarn company and include exclusive colorways or first releases of a new yarn; others are coordinated by one company and include yarn from several dyers, spinners, or manufacturers.
CSA is an abbreviation for community supported agriculture. (You can read a brief but interesting history of CSA in the United States here.) Members buy a share of a farm’s fiber or yarn production in advance, which allows the farmer to plan and budget and also gives the share holder the opportunity to get to know more about how the yarn was produced and the animals that contribute to the yarn. CSA yarn is sometimes undyed, in which case it would also make a great gift for a dyer.
I should mention that I haven’t participated in any of these yarn clubs or CSA programs in the past, but they look like a lot fun! I’ve compiled a list of 5 yarn clubs and 5 yarn CSA programs that are still open for 2015.
5 Yarn Clubs Accepting 2015 Subscriptions
Ladybug Fiber Company: Self-Striping Sock Club (3 Month Subscription)
- Shipments: 3 – January 2015, February 2015, and March 2015
- Yarn: 1 of 6 different superwash wool blend sock yarn bases are hand dyed each month
- Cost: $95
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
- Shipments: 4 – March 2015, June 2015, September 2015, and December 2015
- Yarn: Each package contains hand dyed yarn (in a colorway inspired by the Beatles) accompanied by an original pattern, PLUS a yarn alternate or fiber selection, PLUS a special themed gift
- Cost: $210
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
Sundara Yarn: The Happiness Yarn Club
- Shipments: 3 – January 2015, March 2015, and May 2015
- Yarn: Hand dyed Sundara Yarn, 8 skeins, 2050 yards, DK Angora (angora/wool blend), Worsted Silky Alpaca (alpaca/silk blend), and Sport Silk (100% silk)
- Cost: $310.50 (6 monthly payments of $51.75)
- Deadline for sign up/order: Sunday, November 30, 2014 at 5 p.m. PT
- Shipments: 3 – January 2015, February, 2015, March 2015
- Yarn: Approximately 4 oz (113 g)/375-425 yards (343-389 m) each month of a unique colorway of sweetgeorgia sock yarn (exclusive for at least 1 year) in wool or wool blend
- Cost: $105
- Deadline for sign up/order: Wednesday, December 31, 2014 or when supplies run out
Yarnbox: Classic Crochet Gift Subscription
- Shipments: Monthly (3 and 6 month packages available)
- Yarn: Customizable by weight and color
- Cost: $39.95/month – $215.70/6 months
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
5 Yarn CSA Offering 2015 Shares
Feederbrook Farm (Maryland): 2015 CSA Membership
- Shipments: Ships late August, 2015
- Yarn: Wool – 6 skeins of natural colored or organically hand dyed, locally milled 2 ply DK yarn (approximately 260 yards) from Bluefaced Leicester sheep
- Cost: $175
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
Foxfire Fiber and Designs at Springdelle Farm (Massachusetts): Sheep Shares CSA
- Shipments: Spring Share ships in June 2015
- Yarn: Cormo Flock Sock (90% Cormo wool/10% Bombyx Silk), 220 yards (approx. 2.2 oz) skeins in 3-ply, fingering weight
- Cost: undyed: 2 skeins/$48; 4 skeins/$90; dyed 2 skeins/$52; 4 skeins/$98
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
Grand View Farm (Vermont): 5 CSA Options
- Shipments: 1, dates vary (summer through fall 2015)
- Yarn: Varies. Options include angora/wool blend, llama/wool blend, Romney wool, dyed Romney wool, and mohair/wool blend,
- Cost: $85-$115
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
Juniper Moon Farm (Virginia): 2015 Colored Flock CSA
- Shipments: Ships September 2015
- Yarn: Varies from year to year with an average of 6 skeins of worsted or dk weight yarn in a full share
- Cost: $125
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
Where the Rooster Crows (Montana): Shetland/Romney Wool
- Shipments: 1, late summer 2015
- Yarn: A variety of natural colored wool yarn in whites, browns, blacks and gray, typically 12- 16 skeins.
- Total Cost: $150
- Deadline for sign up/order: open
If you’d like to find more yarn clubs and yarn CSA programs, I have a Pinterest board devote to this theme. Many of these open up at different points during the year and aren’t accepting new subscriptions or shareholders now.
Follow Underground Crafter’s board Yarn Clubs & Fiber CSAs on Pinterest.
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