 I'm back after a busy summer, and with exciting news! Last year I released my first ever flock yarn, Empire DK, and was completely blown away by the response! It was such a leap of faith for me to do, but the first lot sold out in less than a year. After many messages of positive feedback and gorgeous photos of knitwear, I thought it was time to introduce another line of yarn to the Orchard View Collection, McIntosh Aran. Like Empire, McIntosh is 100% Lincoln Longwool from my flock. Battenkill Fiber Mill did such a beautiful job on Empire, I knew I wanted her help with this yarn also to continue keeping the whole process of flock to yarn in NY. McIntosh is a 2-ply aran weight yarn that is made with fleece from my mature ewes, making it a little more rustic than Empire, which is made using lamb's wool. It has the same beautiful luster as Empire, but more structure.   She's also where my red hair came from! eIf you remember my post about Empire last year, there was a reason I chose that name and there's a story behind this yarn's name also. I decided years ago that if I ever created my own lines of yarn, they would be named after apple varieties, specifically apple varieties that were developed in NY. In my research about the McIntosh apple variety, I discovered that it actually wasn't discovered in NY, but nearby the St. Lawrence River in Ontario, CA by a man named John McIntosh. Interestingly, Mr. McIntosh was born in the Mohawk Valley region of Central NY shortly after the Revolutionary War and moved to Canada as a young man. So... still a NY connection! He discovered the apple growing wild on his farm and transplanted a few trees to his garden and the McIntosh apple was born. More importantly than being an apple variety, McIntosh is a connection to Grandma Smith, my maternal grandmother. Grandma's maiden name was McIntosh and several of our family members have collected apple-themed things over the years because of the name. Grandma Smith was very crafty and loved to sew. It's only fitting to have a yarn named after her, as I think much of my love for crafting came from her. Each 4 oz skein of McIntosh Aran is approximately 165 yds and comes in four colors: charcoal, silver, white and marl. Contact me if you're interested in trying this new flock yarn! It is available through myself (hopefully soon you'll be able to purchase directly on my website), and also at Lift Bridge Yarns in Fairport, NY and Prado de Lana in Stockbridge, MA. As always, I love feedback on my yarns and seeing what people are create with my wool. 
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