You can read a history of Sue's work over on the Blacker Yarns website and in her own words over at the Wovember blog.

Your tributes to Sue

Nothing I can say could quite put into words the impact that Sue's work had on the British knitting industry, so instead, I asked members of the community to share their memories. If you have your own memories of Sue, please do leave them down in the comments below.

"Being interested in all things Falkland, I first heard of Blacker yarns when they brought the Shorts' wonderful fleeces to the UK market in the form of the Blacker Swan yarns whereas I think most people thought of them as British wool suppliers who then moved into Falkland wool. I'm definitely in favour of encouraging knitting with Blacker yarns, I've yet to find one that I don't like! Thinking about all her family and friends in the woolly community."
Michelle Hazell, designer and technical editor

"Blacker Yarns was the first place I discovered online that made me realise the possibilities of different wool breeds. The passion that shone through was clear and so inspiring for me as a designer and as a knitter."
AnnaEdesigns

"Being incredibly enthusiastic about British Wool and helping me choose yarn to use for the #woolsack project in 2011/12, thus giving me a passion for natural fibres too."
CharleesAunt

"She helped me create my Cochrane yarn which we developed to celebrate my 10th anniversary a few years back. She knew I wanted to use Scottish Bowmont for it and found me the perfect combination. She'll be missed!"
Ripplescrafts

She spun up my first ever Milburn 4ply back in 2014 I think it was. We moved it elsewhere as she wasn’t keen on the silk but we always talked a lot at shows thereafter, and she’ll be greatly missed."
Victoria, Eden Cottage Yarns

"Yarnporium was my first ever yarn show. I had a list of patterns I wanted yarn for. Sue noticed my list, asked for a look and then proceeded to recommend vendors where I might find suitable yarns, none of them her yarns. She had a real gift for blending different breeds to produce superior yarns. But this came from years of hard work and learning her trade."
Sara

Rosee Woodland, frequent contributor and former Technical Editor on Knit Now, as well as being former editor of Knit Today and commissioning editor of The Knitter shared her memories of Sue with us.

"I was so sad to hear Sue Blacker had passed away. For decades she was a real force for change in British yarn - pioneering the production of single breed yarns and supporting farmers with small flocks to get their fleece spun and in front of knitters.
"Her vision helped transform the industry and elevate British wool to its current sought-after status. The fact that knitters now look beyond Merino and value more traditional breeds is in large part down to her.
"But to me Sue wasn't just a business contact, she was someone I loved to talk to and whose opinion I valued. When I was commissioning editor of The Knitter we often used Blacker Yarns in the designs in the magazine and so I would need to get information from her fairly regularly. Despite being incredibly busy she always had time to chat with me, and what usually started off as a phone call about a yarn order or something technical would turn into a lengthy discussion about life, the universe and everything! She had a wicked sense of humour and a sharp tongue and I admired her for both.
"I spent years talking to Sue without meeting her once, and we stayed in touch even after I joined Knit Today, where we tended to use more man-made fibres and there wasn't as much of a genuine reason for me to ring her!
"When I finally branched out on my own, Sue was one of the first people to hire me and I rewrote some of her oldest patterns for republication. This gave me a great excuse to reignite our habit for lengthy chats and we would shoot the breeze at yarn shows and on the phone for way longer than was necessary!
"The last time I saw Sue was at Yarndale, where she gently chastised me for not buying more of her yarn. She was never afraid to say what she thought and that's why she was so great at driving forward the cause of British wool.
"Sue leaves an incredible legacy, having helped to change both the way wool is produced in the UK, and how it is seen worldwide. I will miss her and am so sad for her friends and family, who of course knew her far better than me, and whose lives are no doubt the richer for it."

Last week also saw the sad passing of Andrew of the Fruity Knitting podcast. I didn't know Andrew as well as I knew Sue, but I do know that he shared her deep love and respect for wool. I can only hope that the pair of them are off together somewhere now, chatting about sheep breeds and knitting from an unlimited supply of beautiful bespoke yarn. If you've never watched it, I encourage you to watch the Fruity Knitting episode on Blacker Yarns.

Celebrating Sue's Legacy

I think it would be lovely if every knitter or crocheter reading this would pledge to knit one project in locally-grown yarn this year. It's not until you have the yarn in your hands that you realise how unique and special wool really is.

To help you on your way, I've rounded up five of my favourite Blacker Yarns projects from the Knit Now archives, which the designers have very kindly agreed to let me share here for free. I hope you enjoy them and don't forget to share your progress here on CraftWorld.

Plaid Scarf by Anni Howard - FREE KNITTING PATTERN
Peeping Sheep Hat by Kirsten Bedigan - FREE KNITTING PATTERN
Heart to Heart tea cosy set by Claire Neicho - FREE KNITTING PATTERN
Autumn Haze raglan jumper by Emma Wright - FREE KNITTING PATTERN
L'Adder Mitts by Michelle Hazell - FREE KNITTING PATTERN

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