Episode 16: Michael Hampton and Tamara White – Vermont fiber farming and milling, Shetland sheep and overcoming fear

Summary: I’m very excited to share the sixteenth episode of the Woolful podcast. Today we get to meet two very enthusiastic fiber folks from Vermont, both of whom have had quite the journey to where they are today…<a href="http://www.hamptonfibermill.com/index.html" target="_blank">Michael Hampton of Hampton Fiber Mill</a> and <a href="http://www.wingandaprayerfarm.com/" target="_blank">Tamara White of Wing and a Prayer Farm</a>.<br> <a href="http://www.taprootmag.com/" target="_blank"></a><br> Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by <a href="http://taprootmag.com" target="_blank">Taproot Magazine</a>, a quarterly print magazine full of delightful stories and photos written by and for people living fuller and digging deeper. Each issue is created around a subtle theme, featuring amazing recipes, crafts, and tales, all with the intention of inspiring people who are interested in deepening their connections to their families, communities, and themselves as they strive to live locally and closer to the ground. You can visit Taproot Magazine online at <a href="http://Taprootmag.com">Taprootmag.com</a> and on Instagram <a href="http://instagram.com/taprootmag" target="_blank">@taprootmag</a>.<br> <a href="http://woolful.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/taprootmag.png"></a><br> Fiber folk 1: Michael is a passionate knitter, spinner, and fiber mill entrepreneur. He’s been on an exciting journey from engineer to now building and operating a fiber mill in Richmond, Vermont where he mills a very exhaustive list of wools and fibers, including our second guest Tamara’s beautiful yarn. His enthusiasm and excitement for fiber and helping bring something back to this community and industry is a really wonderful thing. You can find him at <a href="http://hamptonfibermill.com" target="_blank">Hamptonfibermill.com</a> and on Instagram <a href="https://instagram.com/hamptonfibermill/" target="_blank">@hamptonfibermill</a>.<br> <a href="http://woolful.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/michaelhampton1.png"></a><br> For this week’s “Man on the Street” I asked a handful of fiber enthusiasts to answer a question, shared by Samantha in our <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/discuss/woolful/3157151/1-25#15" target="_blank">Raverly group</a>. “Is there a project that inspired you to improve your skills?” We had some amazing replies from Nikki <a href="http://instagram.com/woolenviolet" target="_blank">@woolenviolet</a> and Leanne <a href="http://instagram.com/Leannecoppola" target="_blank">@leannecoppola</a>.<br> Fiber folk 2: Our next guest, Tamara is a gem among farmers, fiber folks and friends. We were lucky enough to have her and her daughters SJ and Char, stay for a visit last week at our home. Our time together was filled with laughter, good food, Vermont maple syrup and plenty of farm stories and it was great to be able to talk and record our chat in person as we all sat on the living room floor. She is a true testament of strength, compassion and her love of fiber farming and her animals is infectious. You can find her at <a href="http://www.wingandaprayerfarm.com" target="_blank">wingandaprayerfarm.com</a> and on Instagram <a href="https://instagram.com/wingandaprayerfarm/" target="_blank">@wingandaprayerfarm</a>.<br> <a href="http://woolful.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/tammy.png"></a><br> The winner of last week’s giveaway, is Jessica from Mittens and Mason Jars! You’ve won 5 skeins of the Westcountry Tweed yarn from Blacker Yarns. Congratulations!<br> This week’s giveaway is sponsored by <a href="http://taprootmag.com" target="_blank">Taproot Magazine</a>, and we’re giving away a two year subscription to this wonderful publication that brings so much to this community. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment below.<br> <a href="http://woolful.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/taprootmaggiveaway.png"></a><br> We’ve got an exciting shop update this week. Tamara, our second guest has worked very hard to create some beaut...