I'll still teach when possible and do fun projects, but sales are so low I simply can't afford to buy more yarn to dye when I have thousands in unsold stock. The book project will be my sole focus when my sabbatical ends in September.
I couldn't agree with you more. I have a brick and mortar yarn shop and have not even come close to pre-COVID levels. I am holding out for the fall sales and then I will be selling off all my store contents hoping to get more the 10 cents on the dollar. Then I'll be looking for a job. Wish me luck at the age of 64. My shop was supposed to be my retirement.
Heartbreaking doesn't even describe the sense of loss on so many levels when something you love and have poured your life, heart, and soul into not only is no longer viable for you, but has had the joy drained out of it because of all of the stress of trying to keep the lights on. My heart aches for you and the other indie dyers and makers who are experiencing the same. Thank you for all you have done, will be supporting your book, and wishing for you that the corner you are turning winds up having a light at the end that will bring you a sense of renewed creativity no matter what that path is.
I’m so sorry to hear that the business is suffering so. I’ve watched a few of your teaching videos and loved and learned from your speckling one in particular. I’m looking forward to your book. Hopefully one day you’ll find your passion for dyeing again. There is demand for beautiful indie dyed yarn among us knitters. Clearly a better business model is needed to support the makers. Good luck to you with whatever you decide for the future.
I’m so sorry. You have been such an inspiration to me on my fiber journey. You will be truly missed! I’m looking forward to your book. You will be amazing at whatever path you choose!!! 💖💖💖
@@jygood3718 it was a joy to create a movement of open source, freely shared knowledge for something I love so deeply. I miss waking up excited to dye and making enough to keep reinvesting in new tools.
The entire economy is in flux, and the public is nervous about “what’s coming next!?”. This is hitting independent businesses in fiber arts particularly hard, sadly. I used to get upset with people who only shopped for yarn at big box craft stores, but fiber artists are going to go where they can afford to shop. And you’re right - people are making choices about $30 to $50 a skein yarn vs the ones on sale at the big box where they can get a bag full for the price of a single skein. I sure don’t know what the answer is but I’m so sorry to hear of your struggle, your business challenges and I wish you the best on your continued journey!! ❤
I was one who tried to start a business during covid and thought it would pick up after. I learned that especially after that there was no making money in the business nomore and i was devastated because i became to love the craft and looked at it for a side hustle and fun and now its not profitable. So ive stayed to crocheting.
In 2022 as prices rose for essential items I watched my pattern sales plummet 82%. They never recovered. I spent the rest of that year working for free. The following year i tried to grow my own food to feed us and failed at that too 😅 I don't have the overhead on supplies that a dyer has but I definitely understand where you are coming from. I make the majority of my patterns available as free tutorials and YT ad rev is just not enough to make a living off of at my level anyway 😅. I'm so sorry that you are facing closing. For what it's worth I subbed and I do hope that things find a way to turn around for you. Sending love and light and creative vibes as you work on your book. 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻
This is just awful, I am so sorry. I did a good amount of indie dyeing research about a decade ago, took a very long hiatus, just got interested in it again and the price difference in basic necessary items made it clear immediately that it was a barrier I wouldn't be able to cross again. It's heartbreaking to hear it's hit your business so hard, I just found your channel today and my heart bleeds for you! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and all the lovely fibers you've provided people over the years ♥
This is real talk. It’s not just the yarn industry - it’s across various industries. Until very recent, I was a consultant for a number of business and the amount of businesses just taking loss after loss year after year is staggering. We have runaway inflation right now, so the new cost of labor is just causing prices to skyrocket, but it’s not keeping up with salaries, so people have to cut somewhere. It’s sad as ultimately, it’s the small businesses that suffer the worst.
I ended up closing my fiber animal rescue farm nearly 10 years ago for similar reasons. i had the same feelings of loss and no longer finding joy in fiber activities I once enjoyed. I finally just picked up my needles and sat at my wheel again only a couple years ago.
Thank you for your honesty. As a dyer I thought i was the only one having these struggles. My dyeing is a fundraiser for a charity I started in 2016. 100% of the money we raise directing funds our mission: making comfort wraps for moms whose children have cancer. I won’t give up on this fundraiser but I will keep my expectations realistic thanks to your sharing and being honest. I will look for your book and wish you the best of luck❤️
Im sorry to hear whats going on with you/your business. At the beginning of Co Vid I learned to knit (like many others) and soon after found hand dyed yarn. I thought ‘no way Im paying those prices if I can do that myself’ and voila I found your vids. Thanks to you I learned the difference between space dyed, kettle dyed, saturation levels, and everything else, things I didnt find in any other video at that time. So thank you for sharing your knowledge of dying and yarn ❤❤❤ Good luck on your next adventure in life!
This is so sad to hear, your knowledge and skill is so valuable to this industry, your absense will be felt. I wish you the best in your future art and career emdevors, and hope one day itll be easier for incredible creators like yourself to earn a living doing fiber arts.
Hello Nicole I am so sorry to learn that you struggle too. I closed my own business last October for the same reasons and because I could not find joy in the process anymore and it was getting to a point where my psychological health was in jeopardy. I feel you with all my heart, I really hope that your future occupations will fulfill you ❤ Love from Canada 🇨🇦
Am there with you. Was in hot area for 15 so no thought of yarn. Moved north and was shocked by cost of pretty yarn. Raising kids and bad economy made new underwear a luxury. Wanted natural fiber, started drop spinning and eventually started local alpaca spinning. Thing is at 66 don't need more clothes,heck am still wearing cotton sweaters from 80s! Have books written 15 years ago not published as bottom line is net loss. Was doing dove releases but people aren't realistic.. distance=gas, time, feeding birds is year round, bespoke basket is not disposable .So that's technically a hobby also. The only upside is we have incredible skills baked into us and the screw will turn again. Good luck
I totally understand where you are coming from. I am sorry to hear your struggles and I totally get it being in business is rough. Thank you for sharing your heart with us.
When your book is ready, I'll gladly buy a few cookies. I'm sorry this is how you feel at this punt in your story and history. Just to let you know I think you are amazing and so is your work
I have absolutely loved your content over all these years. You taught me how to speckle. U gave me a better version of purple pop using the 2 separate dyes. I use your dye atlas every single time I dye yarn for a project or if I am going shopping to spring for a new jar of dye, I consult those laminated pages for hours. I have always wanted to buy one of your gorgeous batts. But I will definitely buy your book. Is it available for preorder? You have been one of the constant teachers throughout my fiber arts journey. I wish you all the success and happiness for you and your family And I hope you will continue to share what you may be crafting for yourself personally But understand if you didn’t for all the years you have given your time and knowledge I appreciate every bit of it. You inspired me and made me a better crafter/dyer/batt maker etc Thank you frost yarn/nicole❤ For all of it- you are a fiber icon
So sorry they it’s not a viable business at this time- you are so talented. I really appreciate your behind-the-scenes videos about the dark side of selling indie dyed yarns. Over the pandemic I considered launching a business but a little research, plus some of your videos convinced me to not scale up, but to remain a hobbyist. Good luck on your next adventure!
A similar thing is happening with quilt shops - and they don’t have the expense of making their own fabric! The current economic situation is definitely making a lot of us shop our stash first, or figure out other ways to get maximum enjoyment from our hobbies with minimal cash. Hopefully your book will land well with hobby dyers as well as wannabe professionals. I know I can find more space in my craft budget for a resource I can refer to over and over again (or at least plan to - who knows if I’m actually going to dye yarn for myself? But your book will make me feel like I totally can if I want to!).
I have resorted to purchasing all my yarns on ebay at discounted prices by bidding, otherwise I would not still be in very small scale production of natural hand knitted baby blankets and shawls
I am sorry to hear this. I have learned a lot from your online videos. I dyed some merino top following your techniques, and will be spinning it up for Tour de Fleece this year. I am excited for your book to come out, and wish you the best.
I loved your dye videos they helped me a lot when I was learning to dye. I hope to buy your book I honestly cannot wait for it! I have a small Etsy shop and I get views but no one buying. I was doing the dying for fun and maybe make a little money. But it is very hard out there. I am so sorry that your business is not doing well... I love what you do! I hope things change soon and good luck with everything!
And we now have a generation of young adults who were raised on their phones and tablets, and not learning creative endeavors. I know. I am a recently retired art teacher. The changes in youngsters exposure to art materials is sadly lacking at home now. As a result, fewer young adults are persuing creative outlets such as fiber arts and other media in any capacity. Wishing you good luck in your future endeavors.
Sorry to hear this. It is so sad that this is happening. I wasn't able to attend your fabulous work shop in Minneapolis as I live in Northern California and couldn't manage the expenses for the travel, hotel, etc. I was still wishful that there'd be a workshop in California 😢. My prayers are with you that you find fulfillment. Ignore the haters, they are outnumbered by those who love you❤
Cottage industries need to have growing commitment because we know who is buying all the wool, even Italian yarn companies, ship it to China, and wool from Australia and Canada goes through China. It was treason to give away our resources and businesses. But the prices are far beyond what people can do, and its all done on purpose from the top down. My health is not great but I've spun and dyed off and on all my life and everyone expects to do this cheaper than real fibers, not acrylic walmart stuff, but real fibers, but they can't. Not unless they own the million dollar ranch. They want everyone in 15 min cities. All the world is theirs they think. We need prices like the 70's the best decade on earth and cottage businesses back or children have no future and no land either. Its that important, so wish people would come together on this and all issues. And your work has been inspirational, gifted, and a blessed joy to watch and learn and thank you so much.
Oh My. I'm so sorry for the time you are going through. I'm hoping you will get new sales to help you through this. It appears to be a rough art. Yet I see people on ytube making money dying from home. Selling for 25 a skien, in dye lots of 6 skines for 150 please let us know if you are willing to do this. Bless you. ❤️🙏🏻🥰❤️
It is very sad. But these are critical times hard to deal with. People are having a hard time paying for the necessities of life and don’t have the money for fun. Glad you are able to support yourself doing hair.
I'm not sure it was the pandemic. The market started to become saturated ahead of that. This really was inevitable. I was handdying decades ago, and also had a small retail space. People got the "fever" and bought a bunch of gorgeous yarn at higher prices than they were used to paying in the big box stores because the yarn was so much better. Lots of folks now have an expensive stash larger than they can ever use up. At the very time all that was happening, those big box stores have made deals with Turkey etc to produce yarns very similar in color, feel etc to the hand-dyed...and are able to sell it for far less than what hand-dyers need in order to supply their yarn. It was and continues to be a perfect storm...but not unusual for a niche market. Like you said - "it's become an industry that's dead in the water". I'm sorry for the heartache you are feeling. I know the pain!! Looking forward to the book....and based on your gorgeous hair, I'm sure you will do awesome on your new path!!! Hugs.
@@plansandprocrastination in my specific case, which of course is only one data point, it was 100% correlated to the pandemic. I have a trend line of percentage of sales relative to total shop updates and wholesale orders and it's straight down starting in like May or June of 2020 to now. Less every year. Going from nearly 100% sell through to hovering at 10% in a 4 year stretch is just the end of the road for me. I agree about the over saturation of new dyers coming in and undercutting prices and flooding the market. It was a delicate ecosystem that got so out of balance there's been a mass extinction event. And as you said, people who bought yarn as a hobby now need to focus on stash busting. My silver lining is that I get to fall in love with textiles again and do it as a hobby with no thought to profit margin or quarterly taxes. Just pure creative fun. My creative soul needs that sustenance now.
I concur, the trend was headed down before, I got a good bit of a boost during the pandemic (now dropped back, and perhaps a bit below), but definitely the commercial industry figuring out how to get the hand dyed look, as well as nicer yarns, has made a huge dent. The Ravelry makeover didn't help, and TNNA gone and now Stitches, among other things that have happened.....social media algorithms, etc. There will still be demand, but it isn't as strong for sure, and you either need to be a marketing wizard and do plenty of shows/wholesale/whatever to be able to do it as a full time income, or do it as a side hustle and flex with the market. I still love it and will keep going for now, but I'm sitting at 55% of my low goal of profit, it'll improve some (I've pre-bought stock), but it'll still be way under last year unless Q3 & 4 are totally amazing by some miracle. Club keeps me going, there's no way I could keep the store stocked and marketed enough to be profitable by itself, and numbers are down in that, too. Shipping costs are also making a large impact, both for buyers from the shop, and on me as it is rolled into Club price and I don't like to increase it on loyal subscribers.
You're color sense and experimental bent are fantastic, but yeah, there market is over-saturated, and people are struggling to feed themselves. It's hard to justify 25+ dollars a skein for yarn when you have to feed the family. I think your sense of fun and color will be great on hair and I look forward to your book despite not being a dyer or wanting to dye to sell.
I'm sorry this has happened to you. It must be so frustrating to know that tons of people would love to be able to afford to buy your yarns but just don't have the spare cash anymore. It may be a very long time before people can really afford such luxuries again, sadly. Inflation is so out of control and most people are feeling the pinch. I know I am. I wish you all the best in your new endeavors and I look forward to reading your book when it comes out.
Sorry that you had to give up a business that you loved and nurtured. I tried selling some handmade items and had negative profit. I love looking at RU-vid videos. I am finding that there are way too many channels with similar information. I don't have time to read them all.
I’m so sorry to hear this. You have been an inspiration for me as a knitter, crocheter, and a spinner. I’m sad to see you go. Whenever I see your bright colored fiber, I want to buy it. Do you have any more fiber available that I can purchase from you? I would love to be able to dye yarn, but I don’t have the space in my home to do it. I have done some dyeing with food grade dyes. I love it, but my husband does not love when I turn our kitchen into a dye studio! I would love to try solar dyeing.
I would say the industry or fad is waning, real knitters will keep knitting but niches like yours will be the first go to. There will be a comeback but that may take a decade or so.
Sorry to hear that you've lost your mojo and your business is not doing well at all. I for one have learned a lot from your videos over the last few years . Im a hobby dyer and have never understood how bate yarn costs so much . Good luck with whatever you decide to do next and hope hair gives the creative outlet you need❤
The farmer feeds, provides vet care and shears the sheep. They sell it to the mill, who up charges to the distributor who then sells it to us. Everybody in the chain needs their piece.
@@NicoleFrostYarn true , as a former sheep keeper I totally get it I also understand the farmer makes the least in the chain. Our shearing costs were more than anything we made but in the UK we have a weird arrangement re wool and the wool marketing board.
I am sorry to hear that the “real” dyers are struggling. I see the issue as too many folks are calling themselves dyers are flooding the market. (i am a hairstylist for 30 years, so welcome ) They have no vision for the industry or design or even color! Are you still working with Dharma and there platform?
@@californiaproud3638 my fervent hope is that a real person did not write this, but a bot someone is teaching to troll the web. I can't imagine having such a grim, ugly life as to leave comments like this on the accounts of people like me who spent decades providing free education to the public. I hope something joyful happens for you that knocks the desire to harass others in your free time
Lots of people care and love Nicole. I’m sorry you’ve got so much negativity in your life that you feel the need to attack others. I hope you find something positive that makes you change your attitude on life.
