Yaks & Wine

Why do people like Merlot or hate Chardonnay?  They are all just grapes- but it is what you do with a breed of grape that makes the wine special or average or if it is a numerically rare wine because only 50 cases are made a year from a certain winery.

A bottle of wine can be rare because of the grape used, the location that the grape was grown in, the year it was made, or because of the amount made.

It is well known that if a Tuscan grape vine is grown in Australia or Chile, the wine made from it’s grapes will taste different.  The varietal of grape will change after planted there for a while.

If compared to the numbers of sheep or cattle all over the world, the number of yaks is small.  While yaks are common in the Himalayan region, this region is not common.  You could not take a Yak from here, feed it grain in Ohio and get the same kind of fiber. It is because of the place the yaks are raised, the altitude they live at, the particular climate that exists at this altitude, the native herbs and plants that the yaks eat while wondering and grazing in a nomadic manner, that produces a product of this quality.

Sheep, as an animal, are not rare.  However, there are breeds of sheep that are rare because there are only so many of a certain breed producing wool, and living in a certain area of the world-.  There is a reason people seek out Icelandic wool or Shetland wool. The same exact sheep can be place on a farm in Texas and the wool will be one third of the production, rough and of a low quality.

Yaks may exist in other places in the world, but our yaks are a specific, and rare breed.  A yak from another region could not survive well in the Himalayan region having been raised in a small pasture and being fed grain at a lower altitude.  It would get sick if taken into the highlands and made to travel large distances to graze for its food.  It would not know what plants to look for and would be unable to survive the temperature extremes.
Only yaks native to this region, are able to survive the high altitude, the harsh winters, and long distance travel required for grazing.  It is all of these elements working together that create this rare fiber.

Featured Product: White Yarn

We are excited to introduce this new product to our yarn line.  Our white yarn has the same properties as our Natural Brown, is just as soft and just as warm.  This yarn is ready for you to dye or use as is.  It looks great knit up into Fair isle patterns.

Photo courtesy of Vince Gatton, NYC

Midwest Fiber & Folk Art Fair

Thanks to all of you that came out to the Fiber & Folk Art Fair last weekend! I had a wonderful time telling our story and answering your questions about the work we are doing.

I’d like to thank Joe’s Fiber Tools especially for allowing me to share a booth with them.

July 16-18, 2010

The Rocking Yak will be in Chicago this week at the

This will be our first year attending this fair & we are VERY excited. It looks like there will be something for everyone! Live music, workshops, the marketplace…
We will be at booth #327. Please stop by and say hello. We will be hosting a great giveaway so you won’t want to miss that.

From Yak to Yarn

A first hand glimpse of how our yarn is made.

First, fiber is collected from the yaks by gathering the raw fiber as the animals shed their undercoat naturally in the spring months.

The fibers are then cleaned, and sorted according to the quality of the fibers. Only the finest quality of fiber is chosen to make into our yarn.

The Rocking Yak delivers all the fiber to women residing with their families in several small villages.

To do spin, the women use a drop spindle and bowl. They take care to work the fiber into a luxurious yarn that can be brought to the western market place.

All of the spinning is done in the homes of these women in order to preserve the family unit, which is tradition in the Tibetan culture.

The Rocking Yak then returns to these villages to collect the completed yarn.

Then the yarn is weighed, balled and labeled to make ready for the market place.

Happy New Year!

Tibetan New Year (Losar Festival)

The Tibetan New year, also known as Losar, is the most important festival in the Tibetan calendar. It is celebrated over a period of two weeks during the months of December and January.Losar Festival is celebrated by Tibetan people, and is marked with ancient ceremonies that represent the struggle between good and evil, by chanting, and by passing fire torches through the crowds. The Losar festival is characterized especially by its music, dance, and a general spirit of merrymaking.During the last two days of the old year, which is called Gutor, people in Tibet begin to prepare for the New Year. The first day of Gutor is spent doing the house cleaning. The kitchen especially must be cleaned because it is where the family’s food is prepared, and hence is the most important part of the house. The chimney is also swept free of dirt. Special dishes will be cooked. On the second day of Gutar, religious ceremonies are held. People go to visit the local monastery to worship and give gifts to the monks. Tibetans also set off firecrackers to get rid of evil spirits which is lurking around.On New Year’s Day, Tibetans get up early, and put on new clothes after having taken a bath. They then worship the gods by placing offerings in the front of their household shrines. The offerings usually consist of animals and demons made from a kind of dough called torma. In addition, this day is for family members to exchange gifts. Families also have a reunion dinner, which usually consists of a kind of cake called Kapse and an alcoholic drink called chang, which is drunk to keep warm.PracticeThe Tibetan calendar consists of 12 lunar months, and Losar begins on the first day of the Tibetan month. The celebrations for the Losar begin on the 29th day of the 12th month of the Tibetan calendar in Tibetan monasteries. That is the day before the Losar’s Eve. On that day, monasteries hold a special kind of ritual in preparation for the Losar celebrations. People place various ingredients such as chilies, salt, wool, rice and coal in dough balls, which are then handed out. The ingredients that one finds hidden in one’s dough ball are supposed to be a lighthearted comment on one’s character. For example, if a person finds chilie in his dough, that means he is talkative. If white-colored ingredients such as salt or rice are hid in the dough, it is believed as a good sign. If someone finds coal in his dough, it has the same meaning as finding coal in the Christmas stocking; it means that one has a “black heart”.Traditionally, on the first day of the New Year, the housewife will get up very early. After cooking a pot of barley wine for the family, she will sit beside the window awaiting the sunrise. As the first ray of sunshine of the New Year touches the nearby earth, the housewife takes a bucket and heads for a nearby river, or well, to fetch the year’s first bucket of water, which is seen as the most sacred, clearest water of the coming year. The family that fetches the first bucket of water from the river/the well is believed to be blessed with good luck for the coming year.?In Ta’er Monastery, on the first day, Lamas will hold religious celebrations, which include worshiping the God, chanting Buddhist scriptures and having a new year banquet.On the second day, people visit friends and relatives. That night, Tibetans whirl burning torches in the homes to drive away evil spirits.On the third day, Tibetans in Lhasa especially visit the local monasteries, where they make offerings. Tibetan New Year usually last 15 days.

The Rocking Yak Hats

We now have several hats available for purchase. Each hat is handknit to order. Orders can be completed and ready to ship in 5 business days.

A Giveaway

The Rocking Yak is being featured over at Between Hitching Posts today. There is a giveaway going on for one ball of 100% Yak Down Yarn, & a free pattern featuring the yarn!

Go check it out!

Monk Messenger Bags

Now available in the shop!

The bags made by our Tibetan friend have arrived & they are wonderful.  Great for carrying all the knitting supplies needed for a project! These bags are approx. 10″ x 12″ (they vary in size a bit). The body of the bag is made of woven wool that has been dyed. The straps & inside lining are made of a softer fabric so it is comfortable to carry. 

News from the Field: June 22, 2009

Great news.  I’ve just returned from purchasing 200 kilos of yak wool. Sales have been down, so the factory was more then willing to work with me.  Usually they only like to sell by the ton. 150 kilos are the natural brown color.  The other 50 kilos is bleached. It is said that bleaching gives the wool a rougher feel, but to tell you the truth, I personal can’t feel any difference at all.  But I’ll leave that up to you experts.

For those who haven’t guessed yet, the bleached wool is for dyeing.  Yes, we are one step closer to bringing you some colored yarn, yahoo!  A couple just moved into the area that I’m working in who is teaching natural dyeing techniques with local plants.  Such perfect timing!  Now before you get to excited, this isn’t going to happen over night.  I’ve got a lot to learn so please be patient I am still a one man show out here. I’ve been working this dream out of pocket and my funding is very limited.   My hands are tied from really moving the dream along, and putting this beautiful product, made by these incredible people, into your lovely hands. One way you can help is by buying our product.  That is the only way were going to make a lasting impact into these dear people lives.

I wish you could be here with me as I move in and out of these villages, enjoying the hospitably of the Tibetan culture, drinking yak butter tea with a sea of dirty faces smiling back at you through a smoke filled house. It is absolutely incredible! The reason I’m here is because our friends are poor.  Some of the kids I’ve met have never even been to school.  How sad is that in this day and age. I want you to buy our wool because it’s an incredible product, but even more then that, you get the satisfaction of knowing that you are helping to improve people’s lives.  And that my friend, is priceless.

Sincerely,

Bret Colledge