Icon - Arrow LeftAn icon we use to indicate a rightwards action. Icon - Arrow RightAn icon we use to indicate a leftwards action. Icon - External LinkAn icon we use to indicate a button link is external. Icon - MessageThe icon we use to represent an email action. Icon - Down ChevronUsed to indicate a dropdown. Icon - CloseUsed to indicate a close action. Icon - Dropdown ArrowUsed to indicate a dropdown. Icon - Location PinUsed to showcase a location on a map. Icon - Zoom OutUsed to indicate a zoom out action on a map. Icon - Zoom InUsed to indicate a zoom in action on a map. Icon - SearchUsed to indicate a search action. Icon - EmailUsed to indicate an emai action. Icon - FacebookFacebooks brand mark for use in social sharing icons. flipboard Icon - InstagramInstagrams brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - PinterestPinterests brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - TwitterTwitters brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - Check MarkA check mark for checkbox buttons.
You are reading

Dyed by the Sea: Seacolors Blankets from Maine

Search

Dyed by the Sea: Seacolors Blankets from Maine

October 4, 2012

Guild artist and sustainable farmer Nanne Kennedy is a busy woman. She runs an 80-acre farm; raising sheep, preparing wool, dying yarn, and making sweaters and blankets in Washington, Maine. And did we mention that she’s developed a process of solar dying wool in seawater called Seacolors?

Instead of using chemical salts or acids, or petroleum-sourced heat, Kennedy developed a system using natural salts and acids and solar-derived heat. By trading time for temperature, the colors melt slowly into each other and the yarns, resulting in soft colors as well as itchless wool. “I call Seacolors a Yarnery,” she says. “Like the crafting of wine in a winery, crafting of color depends as much on the weather and the breed stock as it does on the artisanal blending of good taste.”

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 3

Above: The background colors in Kennedy's Mermaid Napper blankets derive directly from the sheep, while the accents are from her Seacolors yarns; $280.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 4

Above: A batch of Seacolors yarn in their natural habitat.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 5

Above: A stack of Mermaid Nappers wait patiently for takers outside of Kennedy'a sauna: $280.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 6

Above: Kennedy juxtaposes wide stripes of Seacolored yarns in her bigger-than-king-size blanket, 3 Bags Full: $600.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 7

Above: Sheep, yarn; it doesn't get much simpler.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 8

Above: Kennedy's Seacolors emulate the surrounding environment of her farm.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 9

Above: Kennedy's products are Bioregional which for her means that all the sourcing, scouring, and spinning is within a five-mile radius of her farm.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 10

Above: Young members of Kennedy's sustainable community.

Dyed by the Sea Seacolors Blankets from Maine portrait 11

Above: A corner detail of Kennedy's Salt Day Bed Throw; a reproduction of a three-stripe design originally woven in the 1840s and currently on display at the Maine State Museum; $450.

N.B. A chill in the air and looking to replenish your blanket supply? See 185 images of Blankets in our Gallery of Rooms and Spaces.

(Visited 246 times, 1 visits today)
You need to login or register to view and manage your bookmarks.

Product summary  

Have a Question or Comment About This Post?

Join the conversation

v5.0