Behind the Scenes with @Haynes House Yarns

We are so excited to introduce you to @Haynes House Yarns and the family behind the brand.

@Haynes House Yarns
Trunk Show at String Theory
Starting Saturday, February 25, 2023

The yarn they sent includes a beautiful assortment of colors on a variety of bases: 

• Haynesville Fingering 100% Merino, 437 yds/100 grams (4 ply)
• Bare Feet Sock 75% Merino/25% Nylon, 463 yds/100 grams (4 ply)
• Community DK 100% Superwash Merino, 231 yds/100 grams (4 ply)
• Alien Worsted  100% Superwash Merino, 218 yds/100 grams (4 ply)

Let's go behind the scenes, a bit...

What is your favorite part about dyeing yarn?

Color! I love color and love to see it come together. I love when I make an unexpected but wonderful discovery that two colors DO play well with each other. I also love when colorways get a glow-up. Meaning, I'm not sure about it while I'm dyeing but love it when it's dried and skeined.

Of the colors we are getting for the trunk show, which is your favorite color and why?

Oh, that's hard. Like picking a favorite child. But I will give you one in each color family. For pink, But It Likes You. For orange, Dream Orange, and for red, That Red Tree. In blue, What Are We Doing Today? and in purple, Perfectly Amiable (Mr. Darcy). For browns/gold Fall Back and Flag on Play. Don't have a favorite gray, I love them all.

Now I wonder what all these colorways would look like together...hmmm.

Which of your colors best reflects your personality?

Whew. That was even harder than picking my favorite. I have had many people tell me that I am a very colorful person. I guess I'm going to have to go with all of them.

What is the ugliest color you’ve dyed and why didn’t it work?

Yikes. The ugliest, I think, is one I dyed with pink, orange, and very poor judgment. It didn't work because of poor judgment. And I preference that statement with "I think." Because I have found that just because I don't like it doesn't mean it's ugly. There are several popular colorways in the shop that I gave the side-eye when I dyed them. But they connect with customers. So I say ugly with a grain of salt.

What advice do you have about combining colors in, for example, a two-color shawl?

Okay, this may be unconventional advice but pay attention to the colors the designer picked to use as the sample. This shawl came from the designer's brain and was created with intentional color selection. Meaning, if a pattern calls for two high-contrast colorways, that's because the designer thought that was the best way to show off the stitches of the pattern. Or if the designer recommends a highly speckled colorway, using a tonal or variegated might "flatten" the design. I have designed a few patterns and my colorway selection was thoughtful and intentional. Follow the designer's lead.

What is your best knitting tip?

One of our hashtags is #athayneshousehappy. I think that's my best knitting tip: be happy. I understand the discomfort of learning a new technique but overall, be happy in your knitting. Don't like the color? Change it. Don't like the pattern or fit? Frog it. There is so much unhappiness in life already. Make knitting or crocheting your happy place. Guard it because some days, it's the only bit of happiness you may have.

What are two interesting things about you that aren’t fiber related?

First, books. I am a published author and I often have to put down my dye hat and put on my writer hat. I love to read and I read a lot. I read more audiobooks lately because I like to knit/crochet while I'm listening.

Second, relationships. Once upon a time I used to be the senior pastor of a church. One of the responsibilities I had was to help people have healthy relationships, either with God or other people. In doing that job I saw how many people were in dysfunctional relationships with many different people in organizations. I was always fascinated with how people decide to stay in or leave a relationship.

If you didn’t dye yarn, what would you do?

My resume is all over the charts. I was a bookseller and a sales manager for a major bookstore chain. I managed a craft shop when I lived in Belgium. I worked for Burger King for a long, long time. I managed a shoe store and was the branch manager of a bank. I also worked as an administrative assistant at a church. If I wasn't dyeing yarn, I would do whatever I wanted cause I certainly have the experience and confidence to do it.