I first discovered Handspun Hope eight years ago (see Yarn from Rwanda?) and always have a project with their yarns on my needles and looms.
It is a privilege to co-sponsor the new Long Thread Podcast episode featuring an interview with Handspun Hope’s Diana Wiley.
I can certainly say without hesitation that all of Handspun Hope’s yarns weave very well.
A project example for the Madagascan silk yarn is the Rhinebeck Headscarf.
For my current pin-loom weaving project I am modifying the Ditta Vest pattern to weave a jungle scene. The story behind it? I recently saw a knitted vest with a pocket to hold a small matching stuffed animal.
Handspun Hope has the most adorable felted ornaments.
I decided that a vest with pockets would be a great way to enjoy those ornaments beyond displaying them on my Christmas tree.
Stuffed animal Hector snug into the picture to guard the loom.
I chose several different colors of Handspun Hope’s Organic Merino in worsted weight for the design to make a tree for the gorillas, and a meadow for the giraffe.
All will be woven on the Original TURTLE Loom™, R-regular sett for worsted weight yarn.
Allow me a quick note … if you look closely at the following picture, you will see that the purple yarn is slightly thicker than the others. This showcases another benefit of pin-loom weaving handspun yarns (more in the recent Spin Off podcast post):
The loom determines the shape and size of your weaving.
Even if you weave with yarns that vary in thickness, the pieces will all work together in your project just fine!
I will post photos of the finished vest here on the blog … I hope you’ll come back to see it!
While I don’t have a woven showcase for the Ethiopian cotton (I will have to fix that!) I do have some beautiful Umutuku on my knitting needles to make the Butte Meadow Top, the winner of the recent Farm & Fiber Knits Summer Bracket Challenge.
I am also using Handspun Hope’s Organic Merino DK for the Ripple Vest from the cover of the Farm & Fiber Summer 2026 issue.
You can’t just craft one project, right?
No matter which fiber craft you prefer, I hope that you will check out Handspun Hope while listening to the Handspun Hope podcast episode to get inspired by their yarns and products.
