How Three Birches Homestead came to be
After the sudden halt of my busy and fulfilling life as a musician, first loosing my duo partner to cancer in 2018 and then the pandemic killing my hands-on music program “Touch the Music” in 2020, I focused on what was right in front of me.
In the fall of 2019 I received a group email from our local weaver guild that somebody was looking to re-home angora rabbits due to their family situation. When I saw the email at first I clicked it away. But then a friend forwarded the same email to me and it got me thinking. Rabbits have always been special animals to me. I was planning to get a fiber rabbit somewhere in the future because there was this idea of learning how to spin yarn in the back of my head. I have knitted and crochet all my life. Making my own yarn had to happen at some point. I took it as a sign and a few days later I had to do 3 trips in my little Honda Fit to get 5 German angora rabbits plus a bunch of cages home.
And honestly these rabbits saved my life during the pandemic which happened shortly after. They gave me focus and a routine in my day. I absolutely fell in love with these amazing animals and their incredibly soft fluff. And so it all began…
Throughout the pandemic I extended my veggie garden and got back into cooking and baking from scratch. It is the best feeling to go out in the garden, harvest what looks good and then make a meal with it. I have become a ‘tomato snob’. I will only eat tomatoes when they grow in my garden. Eating what is in season has become a big part of my life. The awareness what nature can offer makes you humble.
In 2023 I took a step back looking at all that I was doing. Raising angora rabbits, growing most of my own vegetables, preserving/canning, enjoying fresh eggs from my little flock of beautiful chickens, baking bread, crocheting all kinds of items from potholders and doilies to seasonal decorations and cat toys. I realized, I was homesteading! And Three Birches Homestead was born!
I dove into yarn making and now there is no way back. I love working with raw fleeces, scouring, brushing, blending fibers and spinning squishy yarns. I’m envisioning moving to a rural property, away from cars, neighbors and noise, a big veggie garden and a big flock of chickens. I can see a couple of sheep in my future as well.
I wish that my fiber and yarns inspire you to make something beautiful yourself and that my own knitted and crochet creations bring you joy.
Thank you for coming on this adventure with me. I hope it will inspire you to grow some of your own food and to find joy and peace in old fashion crafts
Claudia