We joined AFW in January 2023.  But of course we have known the store for a few years prior to that.  We offer Project Bags, Stitch Markers and Roving in our booth at AFW.  The fiber comes from our sheep and other local farms.

The Twisted Oak name came from a beautiful old oak tree that is planted in front of our house.  We have many old oak trees around our property but this tree grew its bark in a very odd fashion.  In the summer months our sheep take afternoon naps under it and in the winter months you can find our LGD on guard under that tree surveying the area.  And well, the Woolen Mill portion is for our newly established mill that we have set up on the property.  We became owners of the equipment after a mill in Ohio closed its doors at the end of the year.  A picker, carder, rug yarn maker and wet felting table has now been successfully relocated to our property here in Spooner.  We hope to start taking custom orders for other fiber artists and farmers by spring of this year.

 



I am an avid sewer and the project bags are made from fabric that I find on my journeys.  The stitch markers are a fun project that my cousin who owns Big Sky Engraving and Design cuts for me and then I equip them with the fittings. 




It is always fun to work with different types of fiber and that is what I hope to achieve with the mill.  We are currently trying to work through fiber that I have been practicing washing on.  Hard water is a pain to try and get the hang of!




Mental blocks are hard!  I normally try to have multiple projects on board.  The looms are set up, the wheel is at the ready, and my sewing machine is always out.  I rotate what days I work on each project and that seems to help.  But keeping a nice rotation of projects normally keeps me happy.





Goals that we hope to obtain over the next year:  Build our woolen mill and website up, start taking in custom orders, and offer more classes to our community.

Cerissa and Sean Stockton at Twisted Oak Farm and Woolen Mill in Spooner, Wisconsin