Circus Tonic Merino Possum is Back!
My Sister Knits has some exciting news! We have restocked Circus Tonic Handmade fingering weight Merino Possum Woolen Spun!! This is the most amazing, luxurious yarn you may ever knit with! Plus, every purchase helps fund the conservation of New Zealand’s ecosystem.
Left to right: Damson Plum, Old Jetty, Cenote
Merino Possum is unbelievably soft, lightweight, and warm. It’s a blend of 80% Merino wool and 20% Possum fur from New Zealand. Possum must always be blended with another fiber because the fibers are too short to create a yarn on its own and it would be prohibitively expensive if it was possible. It’s a difficult fiber to work with and producing a consistent yarn is challenging.
Possum fiber has a hollow core which makes it extremely lightweight and very warm. Adding it to an already lightweight and warm woolen spun Merino creates a yarn that is 55% warmer than wool alone. The finished project will also weigh less than the same project knitted with woolen spun yarn by itself. Possum yarn blooms; it will puff up and get softer when washed so swatching is definitely encouraged. Although it’s categorized as a fingering weight, we’ve found that it can be used as a sport weight also.
Left to right: Alpine Everlasting, Wolf, Main Sail
About the possum fur used, know that New Zealand possums have no natural predators. In 1947 they were declared a noxious pest. Today their numbers are estimated to be more than 30 million and that’s with control measures being taken! With voracious appetites and nothing to stop them, they are eating the forests of New Zealand from the canopy to anything that’s on the ground. In addition, they eat native insects, bats, and birds including their eggs. They also spread Tuberculosis to cattle, which is no small concern.
Brushtail Possum, a different animal from the Opossum
What to do? In order to save NZ’s ecosystem, the government hopes to eradicate them by 2050. In the meantime, responsible possum fur recovery is one of the control measures. All fur trapping is done in defined forest areas by accredited trappers who must follow the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act 1999. Also, the NZ Fur Council developed an industry wide Code of Practice for possum trappers based on the Animal Welfare Act. Trapping possums for fur in the most humane way possible is a practical way of dealing with the problem as it is today. To put it bluntly, these noxious pests need to be, and will be, eradicated. Using their fur makes their fate more palatable, helps NZ’s economy by creating jobs throughout the fur industry, and improves conservation outcomes.
Stephen West’s Pogona in progress; a delightful relaxing knit with exquisite yarn
Possums are killed because they are absolutely destroying New Zealand’s forests and ecosystem. Using their fur makes the best of a sad situation in many ways from creating jobs for the trappers to producing the yarn to creating beautiful handmade projects.
Alpine Everlasting, designed by Briana Arlene
Hannah Ginn dyes this yarn in subtle colors that reflect the Australian countryside. The project possibilities are endless! You can go all out and make a sweater out of this lusciousness or you can have a wonderfully soft accessory. A local designer, Briana Arlene, just published a sweater pattern, Alpine Everlasting, using this yarn. Several people have made Sophie’s out of it and there are many hat patterns available.
You just might want to gift yourself some of this oh-so-special yarn and feel good about helping out the New Zealand ecosystem at the same time!
Happy knitting,
