End June on a high, with June Cashmere!

Half-way between the East and the West along the legendary Silk Road lies a land of majestic mountains and nomadic shepherd communities--Kyrgyzstan. Daily life in this remote and relatively untouched region of the world is not for the faint of heart. In brilliant adaptation to winter above 10,000 feet, the indigenous cashmere goats have developed their soft, exceptionally warm and silky downy undercoat, otherwise known as cashmere--soft gold.



The word June in English sounds the same as a word in Kyrgyz, but the words have different meanings. In Kyrgyz, june means animal fiber. In English, June can be a woman's name and also refers to the 6th month, the month that wraps up cashmere fiber collection time each year in Kyrgyzstan. It was fitting within the goals of our company to utilize the dual-language relevant and symbolic meanings of june in a way that highlights the Kyrgyz people and this fiber and connects them meaningfully to a world market.

Just as June marks the official transition from spring to summer, it also marks the end of cashmere fiber collection time in Kyrgyzstan each year. Founder, Sy Belohlavek, and his team travel village-to-village and house-to-house purchasing cashmere that the shepherds have gently hand-combed from each goat. These personal transactions ensure that top quality fiber is being gathered and that the shepherds receive fair compensation for their elite fiber.



From Kyrgyzstan to your needles, this incredibly special yarn makes beautiful heirloom garments that will last for generations. June Cashmere Operations Manager, Amy Swanson, will be visiting us at the Shop this week and will be bringing a trunk show with her!

 
This is your chance to come and see the finished garments and dream about your future in cashmere! The garments will be here the week of June 27th.

Join Amy and Deanna for an Instagram Live (@needlesinthehay) at 3pm on Tuesday June 28, 2022 where we will show off the samples, answer your questions, and talk about cashmere!

To help you get started we are going to be taking pre-orders on June Cashmere yarns to help accommodate your desired colours and quantities. If we don’t have what you need in stock, please make a pre-order! Pre-orders will be fulfilled by the week of July 11th.

<<CLICK HERE TO BOOK YOUR PRE-ORDER>>

We are also offering a special bundle price with Meiju K-Ps popular Contrasts book for ten lucky customers. Save $25! This is a special limited offer which will expire on July 2nd, or when they're all gone, whichever comes first.The Bundle comes with one copy of the book, and four skeins of June Cashmere DK for the Wave and Flow shawl.

Amy also did a podcast discussion with Meiju where she talks about and shows off her designs from the book! You can view it here.

Here’s a sneak peek at some of Deanna’s favourite sample garments traveling with Amy.

Sand Waves Poncho, by Norah Gaughan (6 skeins fingering)
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/20-sand-waves-poncho-2


 
Brookside, poncho, by Tayler Harris (3-5 skeins fingering MC and 1 skein each of 4 Contrast colours)
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/brookside-poncho-2


 
Wave and Flow, by Meiju K-P (4 skeins DK)
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/wave-and-flow



Uinta, by Tayler Harris (6-13 skeins fingering)
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/uinta-2



Crosswater, by Tayler Harris (6-16 skeins DK)
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/crosswater