No sooner had Kersti hit the shelves then we were bombarded with questions from all of you! To clear the air, we've decided to dig in deeper and give you not only a first hand interview with Taiu- creator of Kersti (both the yarn and the young woman), but also give you a chance to try it out for free with a giveaway!
Here's what Taiu had to say about Kersti:
JBW: Tell us about Kersti -your daughter and the yarn!
Taiu: Kersti the Yarn is a wonderful DK weight merino yarn, soft to work with and wear. The yarn is perfect for babies for its cushiony soft feel. It is also a wonderful 3 season sweater weight yarn. We introduced Kersti to the market in 2003, as consumers were demanding a Koigu hand painted Merino Yarn. It has really been a little sister yarn to KPM /KPPPM (Kersti was just a perfect name for the yarn at the time)!Kersti the Daughter has grown up right in the middle of the Koigu business. She was born in 1998. My mother and I were still dying in our old farm house at the time, doing retail/wholesale. Kersti was 3 months old when we took her along to our last retail show Stitches East. In early 2000 we had a play area near us for Kersti while my mother and I dyed yarn. As our Wool Shed grew she got a play room. Riding a tricycle or scooter from one end to the other of the wool shed was a daily routine.
JBW: What's your favorite project you've made with the Kersti yarn?
Taiu: My favourite project in the Kersti is The Cubes Block and Squares blanket in Koigu Magazine 1 - firstly it is really fun to make, and secondly the blanket is so cozy on the couch watching TV -while and after you have made it.
I also love wearing Kersti Yarn Pullover, a cowl type sweater for the winter. As you can see, it is as much fun to make and design a garment or item as it is to enjoy the finished product!
JBW: Does Kersti also work with you? If so, what does she do there?
Taiu: Modeling for many of our Koigu ads. Many of our customers love to see our next ad to see how Kersti has grown up!!
JBW: Is she interested in the farm, the dying, the design?
Taiu: Kersti is a very busy 13 year old. With dance , piano and other school activities. Yes she has “hobby” interests into the dying and designing --The fashion forward teenager!!
Kersti also has had her own hand dyed silk scarf business. At the age of 8! I am waiting for the next idea. In the last year Kersti has taken to crochet – we might see some designing by her soon. As to the farm, well there is no choice there, we have a motto, and that is team work, we all need to pitch in. Kersti enjoys the sheep and is very eager to show in 4H next year.
As Kersti gets older the knitting world will see her more at shows helping out – like Vogue Knitting Live NY. Kersti Helped out Soho in a pinched and was a fill-in model for their fashion Shows. Now at VK live LA she will be back stage help while I am teaching.
Thank you so much to Taiu and Kersti! The soft squishiness of this yarn is unbelievable! Don't believe us? Then try to win some!! We will be giving away 2 hanks of this yummy yarn to 5 readers of our blog! In order to enter, leave a comment here telling us what job you would want to do most on a sheep farm by Monday, October 3rd at midnight PST! (Only one entry per person please!) We will select and post the winners on Tuesday, Oct. 4th post.
Thank you and good luck! Bethany
P.S. You won't want to miss our next couple of Newsletters, as we have some really exciting top secret stuff that should be revealed there soon! Our Newsletters come out twice monthly, are free, secure and just down right fun!
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"Where do you go on holidays? That's a good
question, and to that I ask ‘whats a holiday’? When you run your own business
and have a daughter that has a crazy extracurricular life (that would be me),
holidays are very rare. I dance right through the year and by the time a
holiday comes all I want to do is sleep. When we do travel it’s for business,
and I'm grateful for being able to travel with my mother across most of the
United States, and most recently I was able to travel to Koln (aka. Cologne), Germany for a
trade show. Going to Koln was my first trip overseas, and out of everywhere in
Europe I'm glad it was Germany. 
In Germany I felt
completely immersed in the history, culture and the food. Whether I was eating
Schnitzel, Pork Knuckle, mashed potatoes or the trip to the Lindor Chocolate
Museum, the food was delicious. Then there was the Cologne Cathedral, the
Ludwig museum of art and my favorite the Hohenzollern Bridge. The bridge
crosses over the River Rhine, and has been rebuilt due to a bombing in WW2. My
favorite part of the bridge is the Love Locks. Over 40,000 colorful locks are
scattered across the bridge. It’s a beautiful and special experience if you
ever get to walk across the bridge and see the different shapes and sizes of
the locks, that all symbolize a couples love."
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