episode fifteen: tin forest farm

welcome to the fifteenth episode of from field to skin! we’re continuing the second forage collection with tin forest farm as we focus this year on alberta’s fibreshed. i'm hoping to dig a little deeper into different fibresheds by profiling multiple players within them and use their fibres for an accompanying design collection. i had the privilege of visiting alberta in march and july of this year and interviewed alberta yarn project, custom woolen mills, megan samms of live textiles, and tin forest farm all on location. our third episode was filmed on location in july 2019 on treaty six territory.

alana, her husband, and their oldest kids moved to their land just outside wetaskiwin nearly ten years. the 142-acre parcel of primarily wetlands was also 1/4 junkyard, leaving them to slowly uncover and redevelop their property with sustainability at the forefront of their minds. they now have a large garden, pasture for sheep, pens for horses and cows, apiary, and coops for chickens, turkeys, and now quail, all patrolled by dogs and cats. while their focus is primarily on farm-to-table food politics and early childhood education, alana also saw the value of finding sheep breeds that could produce good wool for textiles as well, resulting in their flock of tunis and icelandic sheep. we have a good long chat about all sorts of sustainability politics, which those coming from a foodie background will particularly enjoy.

you can purchase forage: volume 2 on ravelry here.

following this year’s forage collection, interviews will be going on hiatus until the new year and after i have secured funding (stayed tuned next month for news about how you can be a part of that!). if you would like to support future episodes, including ensuring the continuation of in-person interviews, please visit our support page!

mentioned in this episode: custom woolen mills