Shetland 2000™ is a joint product of Yarns International and Jamieson and Smith, wool brokers in Lerwick, Shetland. Oliver Henry, of Jamieson and Smith, had long wanted to offer a naturally colored yarn from pure Shetland sheep. The geography and history of the Shetland Islands created a unique and special breed.  Modern demand for uniformity of color and yarns which are easy to dye threatened the existence of the true, colored Shetland sheep.

 The geographical location of the Shetlands has made it into a maritime crossroads for the northern oceans. Over the centuries the islands have been settled by multi-national travelers such as the Vikings, who brought their own breed of animals, which crossbred with the native sheep, already living on the islands.

Shetland sheep have had to adjust to the climate, struggling for most of the year against rain, sleet, snow and wind.  In order to survive these conditions the sheep have developed their own ‘blanket.’ This consists of a very fine under wool to provide warmth, and a more pointed outer wool which helps the water run off.  In the early days most of the sheep were colored, but over the years white has become dominant, being more suitable for dying. At one time there were over thirty different colors and markings, with rich dialect names such as bleset, flecket, and moget to name but a few.  Shetland 2000 is offered in nine of these traditional colors of pure Shetland wool. Using only the soft undercoat of the fleece, the yarn is minimally processed and free of chemical dyes.  It also comes in colors created by dyeing the natural yarns with plant dyes—still free of chemicals. These colors are only available in kits.

Our Shetland 2000 line includes patterns from designer Ron Schweitzer—offered in books in 1999-2002 and as individual patterns in 2003-2006—as well as patterns from other designers using Shetland 2000. The yarn offers much to the hand knitter.  Its natural softness makes it pleasant to work with and extremely comfortable to wear.  The natural saturation of the colors gives the knitted pieces a richness and depth unavailable in chemically dyed yarns.  Moreover, the absence of chemical processing yields an environmentally friendly product.

We hope you will enjoy exploring the beautiful patterns and yarn. We think it is as special as the island and the sheep it comes from.