Meet the Maker: Laura from Purl Talk

Purl Talk - Sound familiar? You might remember this spectacular indie dyer from when we featured her gorgeous, Wisconsin-dyed yarn during the 2024 Chicago Yarn Crawl. Well, you all loved her collection SO much that we decided to bring Purl Talk back for our first trunk show of 2026! She's bringing us more of the super-soft Fuzzy Thinking silk-mohair base as well as a brand new single-ply fingering in a palette of vibrant colors. We'll have Laura's yarn in the shop and online from January 16 - 29th. Learn more about Purl Talk below!

How did you get into dyeing? Tell us your story, and where you're located!

Hi, I’m Laura Gavins of Purl Talk in Monona, Wisconsin.

I’m a chemist/biochemist by trade, spending most of my career in the medical device field.  I was a knitter and I just wasn’t finding the tonal colors that I wanted to knit with in the commercial yarn space - so I put on my chemist hat and started to dabble in dyeing my own.  If I’m spending a long time hand-knitting a garment, I love to pair it with a yarn that also looks hand made.

What is your favorite part of the process?  

My favorite part is when the yarn hanks are all labeled and ready to go.  They look so pretty together, all dressed up - like they are ready to go out for a night on the town.  And I’m about to send them out into the world and I wonder “What will you grow up to be?”  The potential in everyone’s creativity is so incredibly awesome.

Where do you get your inspiration for colors?

I get color inspiration everywhere. Photographs, nature, etc… We are surrounded by color.   

I love playing with watercolor and seeing how colors blend.  This is how I approach dyeing.  I love to wash or glaze over a base color and look at the interplay between the two colors.  It’s so much fun!

How do you come up with names for the colors?

Some are just boring color names, however, I love a good play on words - like the light grey colorway called Brain Fog.   And if it has to do with music, that’s even better.  And that’s how we got Tealy Dan, Mad About Saffron, and Purple Snowflakes.

Which color best reflects your personality and why?

I’m going to say Magenta Mystery.  It’s warm and fun and maybe a little surprising… and I think that describes me.

Tell us about a WIP or a project in your queue that you're really excited about! Which of your yarns would you recommend for this (or these) project(s)?

Sometime this year I’m hoping to cast on The Florence Sweater by Elenor Mortensen.  I’m going to knit it in You Soxy Thing yarn base using Blacklite as the main color and the Golden Hour mini skein set for the colorwork.

Of what you are sending us, what are your favorite colors or color combinations?

I love blues and greens.  Tealy Dan and Kermit pair nicely.

For warmer tones, the Magenta Mystery pairs nicely with Lavender Fields or with a dark blue like Storm Cloud Blue.

A stunning color pair is Kermit in One Track Mind, paired with Green with Envy in Fuzzy Thinking. 

What is your best knitting or crocheting tip?

Be fearless!  Don’t worry about making mistakes.  Don't judge yourself.  There are no mistakes, there are only lessons to be learned and you can’t learn if you are afraid of making mistakes.  You have to lose your fear and just try things…Experiment!  You can’t help but become a better knitter, crocheter or weaver if you take on that way of thinking.

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

I grew up near the Cuyahoga Valley in Ohio and this inspired a love of national parks.  I have visited at least 15 parks, several multiple times, and also countless national monuments and historical sites.  My national park bucket list is still much too long. 

I’m a first generation American on my Mom’s side, and 2nd generation on my Dad’s side.  My Mom’s family immigrated from Austria, and they are Austrian and Slovenian.  My upbringing was pretty “ethnic” and I thought I was the weirdo growing up - but I appreciate my heritage more and more, the older I get.

If you didn’t dye yarn, what would be your dream job?

I think this is my dream job.  It took me a long time of working in industry before I recognized that this is what I really want to do full time.

What is the best advice you've ever received?

I had a devastating health diagnosis in the spring of 2025.  My best friend said  - “Ok Laura - now is the time to start finding and living your JOY”  I have taken that to heart and I try to remember to find joy every day.   It isn’t always easy - because life is hard and things sneak up on you, but trying to  “find the joy”  or at least contentment or even neutrality if joy isn't possible, has really helped me.  I hope it helps you too.

Share with us one great thing you're either listening to or watching right now (audiobook/podcast/show/etc) - we love recommendations for what to check out while we're knitting!  

I am a bit of an insomniac.  At 2 to 3 am,  I’m usually in the living room with my knitting, playing something on YouTube.  In the middle of the night I like something calming and quiet - which is where “Kiko Sabi” comes in.  She is Japanese, is living in Canada and has created a visual diary of her life. There are no words.  You only see her hands as she works.  Each episode includes some type of fiber art.  Sometimes crochet, sometimes embroidery, sometimes spinning or boro stitching. Her color palette is muted. There are always shots of her cat, Mochi.  He’ll sometimes get into her work space, but mostly he watches.  Anyway - it’s exactly what I need in the middle of the night until I’m ready to go back to bed