Maria Benjamin
@MZebBenjamin
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Lake District farming with @dodgsonwood . I run the farm diversification businesses. Also trustee at @lakelandarts
England, United Kingdom
Joined February 2021
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Went to see the weavers who will make our Lake District Tweed and I just love that they haven’t found anything superior to teasels to make blanket throws fluffy.
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The next four Lake District Tweeds are in production. The wool is being carded and spun at a lovely old mill in Huddersfield.
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Coniston throw made using wool from farms in the valley. The design is inspired by the green of Coniston slate and colour and structure of the copper mines. The soap is made using our Jersey milk and fragrance is Bog Myrtle and Heather, abundant on the fells.
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John wearing Windermere tweed. This was one of our first Lake District tweeds and has been sold out for the past two years. Finally back in stock.
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Haweswater throws are now in stock on our website. Made with Cheviot wool from
@WildHaweswater
design inspired by their river rewiggling work. It’s not really the weather for throws but perfect if you’re dreaming of autumn already!
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We won best Farm Diversification at the Cumbria Farmer Awards🥳❤️
@dodgsonwood
#cumbriafarmerawards
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@herdyshepherd1
Thank you again for sharing James but less than 24 hours later we’ve sold out of the Ullswater and Ennerdale throws.! I have the yarn in stock so I’ll get another batch made, hope really in a month. Thank you everyone!
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Part of the finishing process which tightens up the weave. These are the Coniston and Ennerdale throws being washed and dried. Part of our Lake District Tweed range coming soon.
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Hot, sweaty work but I love shearing day with
@herdyshepherd1
and
@theshepherdswi1
. This fleece will be spun and then woven by
@WovenInTheBone
to make Shepherds Bags.
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@herdyshepherd1
was the first farmer (apart from my John) to trust me with his wool clip. And having his endorsement made a big difference in how our business grew. So a few years down the road and we’re now working with wool from more than 20 Lake District farmers. Thank you!
No one ever deserved to win a thing more!
I’m lucky to call this amazing woman my friend. She’s turns our (and lots of other farmer’s) wool in to tweed, makes soap, etc etc. Takes huge risks and invests to make Cumbria better.
Check out her brilliant products
@MZebBenjamin
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@SoVeryBritish
Lake Diatrict comes round to complain about the noise and car parking that’s partly blocking their drive. They don’t come in when invited but accept a glass of water on the doorstep.
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@herdyshepherd1
Thank you
@herdyshepherd1
❤️
In total there will be 13 valley tweeds. This year we have Coniston, Windermere, Ennerdale and Ullswater. More to come. Farmers get a percentage of the profits. New website just for tweed is
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I would not have been able to do this without the support of
#FIPL
@DefraGovUK
and
@lakedistrictnpa
. This year: Coniston, Windermere, Ennerdale, Ullswater. Next year: Hawswater, Langdale, Borrowdale and Rydal. Each tweed unique using wool from that valley.
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There are very few machines left in the uk that can put the fringing on the ends of throws. These are our Langdale throws being finished.
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@terracottapie__
Brother: Dad’s dead
Me:What? So sudden!
Brother: He was never the same after after accident and had leg amputated
Me: No one tells me anything! I never knew that!
Brother:
My partner: What happened?
Me: My dad died
Brother: No, not dad, Daz died. The cat.
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Lake District Tweed - we now have the yarn colours. Here’s the Ullswater made using wool from
@herdyshepherd1
. See 🧵for the other yarn colours. Will go to the weavers soon. More tweeds to come as we grow so we have tweeds from each valley in
#LakeDistrict
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Just got the paperback. Told through the details of one family’s relationship with the land but also speaks of the wider pressures and consequences of political and business motivated agendas to ‘progress’. But it’s a book full of love and empathy and hope. ❤️
@herdyshepherd1
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Had a brilliant meeting with CEO
@BritishWool
. Really pleased he was supportive of our work with wool and how to best support other small scale producers and manufacturers. Not what I was expecting so I’m delighted. Planning a trip to their wool grading depot in Bradford soon.
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Well, we sold out of our tweed throws and have more than 90 on back order. Had so many wonderful emails from people too. Amazing to have all this support for such a new business. I’m really quite overwhelmed. ❤️
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Here’s a link to a new website I’ve been working on to help and encourage designers and makers to work with British wool. It would have been really useful to me when I started out so hope it helps.
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Brilliant day at The Grazing School learning about soil improvement though implementing regenerative grazing system. Impressive grassland results and much improved biodiversity in the ecosystem. Back today. Run by
@cags_grindrod
and
@herdyshepherd1
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Tomorrow at 5.45am I’m on Farming Today
@BBCRadio4
talking about our Lake District tweed project. Then from 6am the Today programme is guest-edited by
@herdyshepherd1
.
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Getting some of our Cheviot yarn on 1kg cones, made into 100g hanks so they can be hand dyed. What a lovely machine this is.
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Calf is a bit premature and 1st time mum hasn’t come into milk and with
@dodgsonwood
enjoying himself in NZ, I’m so grateful for our farming community. Luke and his dad came with 3 litres of colostrum to get the calf going.
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@herdyshepherd1
BBQ made from a broken wheelbarrow and oil drum. Planter from milk bucket washing sink from 40 years ago when farm was a dairy. Cloche tunnel from alkathene pipe.
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Our Cheviot wool used to make this incredibly soft and light chain yarn. It was spun in Italy because no one makes it in the UK but showed it to a spinner in Bradford and they’re currently installing the machinery.
Delighted to receive this much-needed boost in the post! A worthy
#Kickstarter
project to support & preserve British Wool heritage
#TheWoolLibrary
@BritishWool
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Admired
@armadalefarm
for a long time and when she posted about what to do with her wool, one thing led to another and I ended up having tweed and throws made with her wool. So much of what we wear and have in our homes is anonymous. I like this connection to people and place.
Jock’s on gardening duties and is overseeing the finishing touches to our cottage renovation. Fiona has made a beautiful job of the blinds and cushions she’s sewn. The tweed she’s used and woollen blankets have been made using our sheep’s fleeces produced by
@MZebBenjamin
🙏🏻😍🙌🏻
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So pleased you like it! It was such a long wait to get them made but I hope it has a long life with you.
@herdyshepherd1
@MZebBenjamin
My beautiful Ennerdale throw arrived this morning, thank you Maria! Glad to support our hill farmers and traditional crafts.
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When I was learning to drive, the best bit of advice I got from my driving instructor was, “See when you get to a roundabout, dinnae shite yerself.”
That has become my positive affirmation for tricky situations and it works! 👌🏽😂
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The Farmer’s Yarns at The Farmer’s Arms. Saturday 3rd July. More than 20 vendors. Half are farmers making the most of their wool, many others buy wool direct from farms. Raw and spun wool, sheepskins, knitted garments and kits, talk on adding value to wool.
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Here’s a little video I made of some of the processes involved in making Lake District Tweed.
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@SoVeryBritish
Me: ‘Would you like a drink?’
Them: ‘Only if you’re already making one.’
Me: ‘I’ll have one if you’re having one.’
Them:’Oh, go on the, why not.’
Me: ‘Tea or coffee?’
Them: ‘Whatever’s easiest.’
Me: (screaming inside my head).
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We will be on
@BBCCountryfile
this Sunday 5.05pm talking about our new project Lake District Tweed. We also launched a Kickstarter yesterday to help fund it.
@dodgsonwood
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Our Lake District Tweed project would not be possible without funding from
@lakedistrictnpa
Farming In Protected Landscapes funding. Wool is not expensive to buy, but the capital outlay required to make it into tweed was out of reach for me.
Great to hear about one of our Farming in Protected Landscapes projects on the radio this morning
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A very nice write up about our Lake District Tweed business.
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Nothing happens. Just a very sweet little Castlemilk Moorit lamb sleeping. And a protective mother.
#rarebreed
#gonative
#rbst
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So pleased
@dodgsonwood
is the new Chair at RBST! Very proud of him. ❤️
Great profiles of our new President
@SueHayman1
and John Atkinson aka
@dodgsonwood
in
@scottishfarmer
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For the Ennerdale tweed. The Lancs & Lakes Guild of Spinners, Weavers and Dyers worked on the designs, inspired by each valley.
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A celebration of British wool. 25 stalls selling yarn and wool products. Half the stalls are farmers who are making the most of this amazing resource. At The Farmer’s Arms, LA12 8DT. Sat. 3rd July 10-4pm. Talk at 4.30 - How to Grow a Wool Business.
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The Wool Library - at one point everything we wore came from farmers. Like food, we’ve become disconnected. This project is working to close that gap.
, via Kickstarter
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Moving sheep and getting ready for
@Groundswellaguk
. Our panel discussion on wool is on Wednesday at 5.30pm Speakers Corner. If you’re there, please do come to the talk or see us at our stall A32.5.
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Wool from farms in Coniston has been spun and these colours will be used to make a Coniston tweed.
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A lovely podcast by Haptic & Hue including the journey
@herdyshepherd1
Herdwick wool takes to a finished product. Incl. interview with me and
@dodgsonwood
@worldofwool
,
@WovenInTheBone
and Fabrika.
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A small grant fund for under 18 year old Lake District farmers to help support a passion project. We have £1,500 available for grants of up to £500. If you know a young person who’d like a bit of support with an idea, send them this link:
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All good. Mum is cleaning her and she’s had a drink. Phew!
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Here are some of the finishing processes of our Grasmere throw at the weaving mill. Design inspired by the lead lattice windows and ivy at Dove Cottage where Wordsworth and his sister lived for a time, “plain living, but high thinking”.
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@armadalefarm
@HighFoodDrink
@MairiGougeon
@qmscotland
@FearnFarm
@EdinvaleFarm
@scotfoodjames
We are really lucky to have 2 abattoirs nearby. I got a chiller trailer (with funding from FIPL
@lakedistrictnpa
) that farmers can hire. Mobile abattoir could definitely work and
@rbst
are looking into viability.
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@herdyshepherd1
That’s awful. Our neighbour had some cattle get out on the road at night and it caused a terrible accident. Glad there were no fatalities but I’m not surprised you’re completely stressed.
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Some of our rare breed Castlemilk Moorit fleece making itself useful by teaming up with
@OUBASKNITWEAR
. Really looking forward to wearing my own flock.
#britishwool
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Catch us tonight (Thursday) on Channel 5 at 8pm This Week on the Farm. Honeysuckle and Bramble and me making soap with the lovely Yorkshire Vet Pater Wright. ❤️
@channel5_tv
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I’m one of the many thousands of people waiting to get hold of my copy ❤️
Mad numbers of pre-orders of The Place of Tides
Just another 4000 to sign… this book game has gone insane
I’ll never take this for granted - THANK YOU
Ask your or one of my local Indie bookshop/s if you want a signed one -
@BookendsCarl
@VereyBooks
@SReadBooks
etc xxx
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I’ll be at
@ORFC
for the next few days. Talking on a panel on - More than a by-product: Resetting the way we think about wool. Panel includes
@BritishWool
,
@rbst
and
@FernhillFarm1
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It’s
#farm24
- 9am and we have fed and watered the poultry, walked dogs, fed cats, calves and pigs, loaded some cattle going to auction and did the paperwork and had breakfast. John has gone to auction and I’m getting ready for a talk about our business.
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I messed up most of my Highers by picking magic mushrooms instead of going to class so I never made it to vet school but I ended up with a Masters in Fine Art and run my own businesses on a farm.
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@herdyshepherd1
We had four sheep killed by a dog this week. It’s incredibly upsetting and you’ve no idea when it might happen again.
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These will be on our website on Monday 👏🏽
43 fflwffages just needing to be branded and stamped - then they can be boxed up to go home to
@dodgsonwood
😅🐏
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@herdyshepherd1
I remember reading A Shepherd’s Life and thinking, ‘I wish I could be friends with him’. X
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Chiller trailer available for Lake District farmers to hire. Perfect for small scale poultry production, packing meat boxes etc. Aim is to support diversification initiatives.
#farmdiversification
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@BritishVogue
I watched it for you and here’s the summary. How are you?” both ask, neither answer.
Of the vegan food -
“What is this supposed to be?”
“I don’t know”.
THE END
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A bit of something lovely. My favorite field on the farm with my Jersey cows Honeysuckle and Blossom, their calves and a new young bull. ❤️
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Another leadership election. What a waste of time and energy.
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@KStewNQLD
Hopefully it’s an upward trend and I’d love to see more farmers wearing their own tweed.
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Never watch Countryfile as it just glides over every issue but watched the bit about wool in last episode. CEO of
@BritishWool
basically shrugs and says, ‘that’s just the state of the global market’. Not a great way to improve its reputation with farmers.
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#StormArwen
destroyed the poultry runs and pig ark ended up in the neighbors garden but all the animals are fine.
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Farmers, particularly those interested in wool and what to do with it, would you please fill in this v.short survey? Only 1min of your time:
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@herdyshepherd1
@dodgsonwood
The worst Government I think we’ll ever know. Shameless crooks and I really hope they’re utterly destroyed in the next election.
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I bought my first house when I was 20 after 3 years of renting and some short periods homeless. Flat cost 32K, I put down a 1K deposit (I used my student grant) and my dad was a guarantor because I wasn’t in full time work. Cheaper than rent and didn’t have dodgy landlords.
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@suesustainable
@herdyshepherd1
@pengraiggoch
Yes, the brands that do no manufacturing in the UK and use no natural fibres to be able to sell tops for £3 will only stop when we stop buying the stuff. At one point, everything we wore came from a farmer. I want to see more farmers clothing us again.
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@minkebill
@herdyshepherd1
If you can afford to run a car, you can afford to pay a small entrance charge. Vehicles I see in the Lake District don’t look like they’re owned by poor people, unless they’re farm vehicles!
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Really want to get this barn redeveloped for storage of wool and soap making studio can expand but cannot find a builder in Cumbria who’s not working flat out. Anyone leads?
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