project-image

Herders to Home 2022: Luxury Mongolian Yarn and Fiber

Created by Jon Hetts

Herders to Home, ULA+LIA procures fibers from free-range Mongolian animals to create world-class knitting yarn.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Eveything is in the mail!
about 1 year ago – Thu, Feb 23, 2023 at 11:58:40 AM

Hey Everybody,

Everything is finally on its way to you! The first batch got in the mail two days ago, and I just got back from the last trip to the post office dropping off the remaining items. If your tracking hasn't updated yet, it should by the end of the day tomorrow.

After everything got set up, it all went pretty smoothy. Here's a behind the scenes peek at the final distribution:

 Natural Walnut Sheep/Cashmere Blend

The cashmere/wool walnut blend ended up being quite a bit more brown than I was expecting. I didn't know until I opened up the boxes to set up the final distribution, and at that point it was too late to organize changes. There are a few different shades of the natural sheep wool, and I guess the brown that I ordered wasn't the light brown that we got last year, but a darker natural color. I know I wasn't mobile when this wool was delivered to the factory so I couldn't be there in person, and I guess the factory didn't know what shade I ordered, so production went on as normal. I'm sorry I didn't catch this earlier!

Roasted Walnut

It's still a really great sheep wool and the cashmere blend adds a lot of softness, but I know it's a different color. I used the inventory from last year to fill the orders I could, so some will have the roasted walnut and some will have the walnut from last year. If the color definitely won't work for you and your plans, please let me know after you get your package and we will figure it out!

Tracking and Deliveries

There should have been an email sent to the address that was used for Backerkit with your tracking information whenever I made the labels last Friday. If you search your email for the address '[email protected]' or 'ULA+LIA' it should come up. If you can't find it, feel free to email me at [email protected] and I'll send it over!

Addresses in the USA should get their orders by the end of next week. Canada is usually a couple weeks, and Europe can be about that or longer. Australia can take 3 weeks to a month or even a bit longer sometimes. I did what I could to help manage packages getting stuck in customs for those in the EU, but please keep your eye out for notices for customs payments. If they do require a payment, they will send the package back to me if they aren't paid. 

Other Closing Notes

I wanted to give some appreciation for the support that I've received over the last three to four months once the delays began. Especially with the injury I had to my achilles, the surgery, some ups and downs during rehab, and of course the delays in production, the last few months have been some of the most difficult of my life. The anxiety was overwhelming at times, and you all pretty much saw me bug out in real time when I went back to Mongolia for those few weeks in January.

Apart from a few emails from people a bit out of the loop, everybody was understanding and supportive when I posted updates. That could have just been the vocal minority and maybe there were a lot of people biting their tongues and holding their fingers, but even if that was the case I still appreciate holding back a bit. I was barely holding it together as it was, so I deeply appreciate the slack!

Discount Code

If you get your items and decide you'd like more, please use the code 'KS2225' on full price yarn at www.ulaandlia.com. That discount will be good through to the next Kickstarter campaign!

What's Next

My flight is booked and I'll leaving for Mongolia on the 7th of next month. Pretty quickly I'll have to be meeting with the cooperatives and signing fiber contracts for next season already. One of the crazy things about having so many delays is that we're close to three months away from starting all over! One of these seasons we'll have everything shipping in early winter again. I'll keep everybody updated with monthly-ish newsletters as we start putting it all together.

Washing Instructions

For those that haven't used our yarns before, please follow the washing instructions! Our yarn still contains some spinning oil, and to really realize the true beauty of the Mongolian wools, it needs to be washed in a hot bath with a detergent like dish soap. For the full instructions, you can follow the link here:  Washing Instructions 


But that's it for me! As always, please holler if you have any questions, comments, or concerns! Email always works at [email protected]. You can follow us on facebook.com/ulaandlia or instagram.com/ulaandlia, or join or ravelry group at https://www.ravelry.com/groups/ulaandlia

THANK YOU! I hope you all enjoy your yarns. Please do share the projects you make!

-Jon

Yarn is HERE!
about 1 year ago – Thu, Feb 16, 2023 at 09:18:52 AM

Hey Everybody,

Just a quick update to let you know the yarn has arrived!

We'll need a day or so to get everything organized and print labels before starting the final distribution. To prepare for shipping, we will stop the final add-on sale on the website at 1pm EST tomorrow afternoon (Feb 17th). If you want to pick up any last items, please do so at www.ulaandlia.com and use the code 'kickship' for free shipping and so I know to connect your order to your Kickstarter shipment.

If all goes to plan, everything will be out in the mail by the middle/end of next week. I'll send an update when everything is out! For any last minute changes to addresses or anything else, please send me an email at [email protected] before 1pm est tomorrow. If you need to check your survey again, you can follow the link at https://herders-to-home-2022.backerkit.com/. Feel free to reach out if you have any issues!

THANK YOU!

Jon

Website is live for final addons!
about 1 year ago – Tue, Feb 14, 2023 at 02:44:08 PM

Hey Everybody,

Our shipment is in Pittsburgh and has cleared import customs, so we're just waiting for the final local delivery. It was original scheduled for today (the 14th) but it got moved to Friday (because of course it would) but I think we're actually getting close! I might faint when it finally gets here.

Addons

For those that wanted to add on to their orders, I have updated the website (www.ulaandlia.com) and have everything on sale at close-to-kickerstarter prices. I try to make sure that Kickstarter prices are the lowest prices available to the public throughout the year. Especially through production seasons like this, you guys definitely deserve a discount for making it happen!

If you'd like to add-on to your Kickstarter order, just purchase on the website like you normally would and use the code 'kickship' for free shipping. If you are using an email different from what you used for Kickstarter, please leave a note with your name/email address so I can properly link up and combine your orders. I'm not advertising this sale anywhere as it is just supposed to be for Kickstarter backers. This sale will only last until Friday or maybe Saturday before reverting to full prices.

Recycled Cashmere

I've also added a line of upcycled cashmere items to the website, which is a project I have been working on for a looong time and are coming in the same shipment as the yarn. A few years ago I ran a cashmere drive in UB where I repurchased 2nd hand cashmere clothes with the plan to use it in recycled cashmere yarn. The yarn didn't quite work out, so I ended up with over 200lbs of cashmere clothes that I wasn't quite sure what to do with. I ended up working with the Mongolian Quilting Center, which is a local NGO in UB that provides training and employment for those in some vulnerable groups. Together we were able to produce a 150 piece collection of hats, scarves, and mittens.

Everything is hand patterned, cut, and sewn, so each item is one of a kind. This is my first time showing everything so I'm not too sure what will happen to this collection in the future. Next year, I'm planning to do the skeining and labeling for the yarns myself, and am considering working with them on the handwork and staying involved with them that way. Maybe the upcycled cashmere will be a huge hit and we'll keep working together that way. Maybe both! I guess we'll see.

Next Steps

As for what happens next, I'll send a quick update when the yarn gets here, and then it will probably be a week to get everything packed and to the post office. I'll send out a final update when everything hits the postal system.

If you'd like to check what you ordered and have on the way, you can view your survey on backerkit by following this link:  https://herders-to-home-2022.backerkit.com/ 

Addresses are locked, so you will not be able to change them at this point. If you need to make changes, please send me an email at [email protected] with your info and I'll switch it up for you.

As always, feel free to holler with any questions, comments, or concerns!

THANK YOU!

-Jon

Everything is officially on its way to the USA!
about 1 year ago – Fri, Feb 03, 2023 at 02:38:42 PM

Hey Everybody,

I've just made it back to Pittsburgh (again) and am happy to say that all the yarn is officially out of Mongolia and following me back home. The ETA from DHL for local delivery to me is for February 14th, so I'm hoping that stays accurate. I think the itinerary for yarn is Mongolia -> Korea -> Hawaii -> JFK in New York -> Pittsburgh, so it's pretty well traveled by the time it gets here. Customs clearance stateside can sometimes eat up a few days as well from my experience in the past, but sometime around then should be a decent estimate for me to start filling bags and packages for final delivery. If you can't tell, I'm a bit hesitant to give concrete dates after what I've (we all) have been through this last season!

But I'm happy and relieved everything is completed and has departed Mongolia. I don't have a ton of pictures at the moment, but here are a few of all the marled yarns we were waiting for!

The marleds!

Also a few shots of when they were finishing up our copper camel in the factory. There's a bit of work and shuffling around while everything gets weighed to 100g before being turned into hanks and then skeins.

A quick video of all the boxes waiting to get picked up earlier this week from the factory:

And here is a reminder of all the colors that are available, although some are colors made last year that are still in stock:

2023 Colors

As for what happens next, I'm going to send an email to lock addresses for final delivery now that the yarn is on its way. For those that are still interested in adding more yarn to their order, I will do a 2 or 3 day sale on the site (www.ulaandlia.com) before the yarn arrives and fulfillment so you can buy things at near Kickstarter prices and save on shipping by adding to your order. I'll send out another update when that happens!

THANK YOU AGAIN to everybody for your patience this season! Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, comments, or concerns, either through Kickstarter or email at [email protected]

-Jon

Back at the ranch for the evening
Yak Land

Production Update!
about 1 year ago – Wed, Jan 11, 2023 at 01:42:01 PM

Hey Everybody,

A mix of good and bad news in this one. We're almost finished with all of the spinning, but the handwork required for making the 100g hanks, skeins, and labeling is going to take longer than expected. As the factory had scheduled for the extra help back in November when the bulk of our yarn was skeined up, the scheduling is a bit more difficult at the moment. 

To help with the final labeling, packaging, and exporting, I'm personally going back to Mongolia next week and will come back with the yarn. I leave the afternoon of the 16th and after layovers and time changes I get to Mongolia the morning of the 19th. My return flight is for February 2nd, so final distribution is definitely not going to be starting before then.

When waiting for the final scheduling from the factory, my cutoff date for heading back was them finishing on the 16th. They told me they would wrap up on the 25th, so I thought it was best for me to be there and manage things a bit more closely. It might be a bit of an overreaction, but I'm borderline losing my mind sitting and waiting for updates here stateside, so I think it's best for me to be there. As with every production season, my life is on hold until everybody gets their orders. With the way things have been going this year, it wouldn't surprise me if a few of my signatures or stamps will be required for export, so I'll be able to rest easier if I'm there in person.

So there aren't any problems per se! I just need a little bit more time to get everything out. The manager at the factory was kind enough to send shots of our copper and cobalt in different stages of spinning:

Carded cobalt ready for spinning
Single ply copper camel

Thank you again to everybody for your continued patience. I'll keep everybody updated when I get to Mongolia, hopefully with some behind the scenes pics of finishing everything up at the factory.

For those that may need to change shipping addresses, I will send out a link to do so when everything is finally on its way back to the USA. When everything is here, I'll also put the new items on my website for those that want to add more items to their order before they ship. 

You'll hear from me in again in two weeks or so at the latest!

THANK YOU!

Jon