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| The Congregational Church In Which We Were Married |
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| First Gathered in 1707; Built in 1838 |
I have received so many emails asking what happened to
Vermont Originals, (where the hats were made in Vermont's North East Kingdom by home-knitters), after it appeared to have gone out of business. So I was most pleased to receive an email from the owner of
Turtle Fur, the Morrisville, Vermont based hat company, who just last spring bought many of the assets of Vermont Originals and is now working to rebuild the Vermont Originals business and rehire their employees.
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| Turtle Fur - Shelly |
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| Turtle Fur's Kris, Hand Knit in Nepal |
They sent us some hats, which we have been testing in many spots in coastal New England. So far, they are as warm, tough, and comfortable as the
Vermont Originals originals
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| My Barbour Liddesdale is one of the very first, with knit cuffs, and designed to go under a jacket as a liner of sorts. This one was made in England. I bought it back in the early 90s at Bridgham and Cook in Freeport. |
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| Others in the family also put them to use. Turtle Fur - Breton |
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| Our Rhode Island Red, Delta, nicknamed Mercy Dudley, is now almost six years old. |
I love spending time outside. We try not to always dash between pockets of climate control, but log in as many hours as we can on city sidewalks, village streets, and shores. The sounds are richer; the smells more interesting. I believe conversations are often better had in the evolving context of a walking scale.
This necessarily means that I appreciate
hats. When dressing for a walk, the jacket is great, and gloves are nice, but the hat is what makes me feel complete.
I have always kept an extra hat for everyone in the back of the car. I keep snug, sturdy, warm hats for all of us in the winter and caps to keep the sun out of our eyes in the summer. They allow us to stay and enjoy the days or nights much, much longer.
18 comments:
That's wonderful news. I also remember getting great hats at L.L. Bean, before they fired Vermont Originals and all of those home-knitters and outsourced production to China to make terrible but more profitable hats! Now, I have some last minute shopping to do...
My great great uncle died a few years ago at age 104 and left me a Liddesdale. I'd assumed it was pretty old and it's been sitting in my closet, unworn. I'm 17 and I think I'm done growing but the jacket is still really big on me! Could a Liddesdale be tailored? Also, it doesn't have the same cuffs that yours does, so do you think it's relatively new?
Those photographs really made me smile! Thanks - XOXO
This entry is just what I needed after a very tough week. With thanks, WMC.
What beautiful pictures! I love that church, and the flag.
Wonderful photos. Mercy Dudley is a lovely gal.
I'm glad to learn Vermont Originals is back - when I first heard they were out of business, I stocked up from Bob's Chalet. It's good to know they don't have to be my last! I also love to give them as Christmas gifts.
The Vermont originals make me nostalgic. I had a aunt who was a prolific knitter. She would knit beautiful hats and mittens much like these for Christmas gifts when I was a child. Enjoyed seeing the photo of the lovely church you were married in.
And I covet your hens! What a wonderful life you have.
Thank you for blogging!
First, I have to say, what a beautiful birdie! The church is beautiful, as are those great hats. I love the idea of keeping extras in the car; always umbrellas, I never thought of hats! My grandmother was a maniac with crochet and knitting needles, so my family rarely had storebought knits, and I have more crocheted doilies, etc., than anyone in my county. You are right about conversations while walking, too. We've always had our best talks outside amongst nature! --Holly in PA
Muffy, I showed this to my wife, the knitter, who just the other day finished up a nifty pair of Norwegian style mittens for me. She liked some of the offerings.
You're lucky to have chickens. There's absolutely nothing like a fresh egg cooked in butter, and guys living in the city without this just cannot understand it. We've got a couple of husky dogs next door who would make short order of the birds if we were to have some. . . we discussed this about two years ago and looked into it. But the odds here are not good.
What beautiful photographs! Just love the name "Turtle Fur!"
I totally agree with spending as much time as possible outside; I also try to sleep with the windows open for as long as possible. So much more natural than mollycoddling oneself!..
I am so happy to hear that they are back. It is important to keep production here in this country as much as possible and plus, the hats are super!
I love my Turtle Fur hats! I can't wait to see what they do with Vermont Originals, I'll keep an eye out.
Great to hear Vermont Originals is back! In my search for a replacement, I stumbled upon Ullat Hats:
http://www.vermontwinterhats.com/
which also makes custom wool hats in Vermont. It's nice to have options!
I ordered the Turtle Fur - Shelly after seeing this post. Even though it is hand knit and a nice hat, I was disappointed that it was Made in China and is 100% polyester. I wonder how many little polyesters had to be sacrificed for this hat?
Oh well...
Hi Muffy,
Forgive me if you have noted this elsewhere, but can you comment on the tan canvas Barn Coat that you are wearing in a few of these pics?
Great blog!
Steffan
@Steffan - It is the L.L. Bean Field Coat from many years back. It is the Women's model which they no longer offer, but they do still offer the Men's.
Personally I am thrilled to see a company that has some of their products made in China coming back to US made products. This we should support.
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