An interview with Beth Casey from Lorna’s Laces

One of the greatest things about my job is that I get to meet and work with some of the most amazing, talented and creative people around.  I recently had the opportunity to talk with Beth Casey about her process and the inspiration behind Lorna’s Laces.   Lorna’s Laces is known for amazing colors and unbelievably soft bases to make each project unique.

Gayla: How did you come to own the business?

Beth: I guess restlessness and curiosity is what inspired my journey. Here’s a little of the back story of how Lorna’s Laces and I found each other.

Lorna Miser started Lorna’s Laces in her kitchen about twenty years ago. She lived in a rural area of northern CA and raised sheep and goats. At first she was spinning fiber from her own animals for her own use. Then she decided to dye some of the yarn to see if she could sell it at the local farmer’s market.  The dyeing was so successful that she soon needed to start buying yarn rather than spinning it herself. The next thing she knew, her yarns were being sold at a local shop. Then another and another.

Over the years, her business grew. She started going to trade shows and gaining a reputation. Her company was growing up. But something deep down was tugging at her. Design was really her first love and with four teenagers at home, she found herself unable to spend the time on what she wanted to. So, she decided it was time to sell Lorna’s Laces and follow her muse.

At the same time, I found myself in Chicago facing some big decisions.  I’d worked in college textbook publishing for eleven years. It was a great job for a long time, but after awhile I found myself growing restless. My unhappiness got so bad that one morning as I was starting my daily ritual of whining and complaining, my husband stopped me and said “I’ve had enough. One of us is going to call your boss today to tell him you are resigning. Do you want to do it or shall I?” So I put on my big-girl pants and made the call.

I spent the next couple of years bouncing around, trying to figure out what to do next. I studied bread baking at the French Culinary Institute in NY. I walked dogs, I watched way too much daytime TV.

One evening I was thumbing through a knitting magazine and noticed a small ad in the back. You know those little half inch want ads? It said something about a hand-dyed yarn company being for sale. And it mentioned that it could be relocated. So, I emailed for more information. That was in August 2002. I flew out to meet Lorna Miser and see her studio in October. We negotiated the terms of the sale over the next several weeks and I was introduced as the new owner of Lorna’s Laces at TNNA in January 2003.

Lorna has been happily designing sweaters, teaching classes and writing books ever since. I’ve found a creative space that calms my restlessness and feeds my curiosity. And I get to make pretty string every day.

Gayla: So if Lorna’s muse is design, your’s must be color!  How do you come up with new colorways, what’s your inspiration?

Beth: I look to the world all around me for inspiration for colorways. Sometimes it’s as simple as really seeing that terracotta pot full of mums sitting on the neighbor’s front porch. How would the oranges, yellows and greens play off one another?  (Glenwood) Or going to buy new bath towels and instead of walking into the department store and making a beeline for the green I need, I’ll step back and consider how some of the colors on that big display wall might dance together. (Tahoe) I try and keep my eyes and heart open and pay attention to my surroundings. What about the color of the sky when that crazy storm came through a couple of weeks ago?  Or the way the concrete looks after a rain? Sometimes it’s just silliness, like what would a Zombie BBQ look like? Or a Unicorn Parade?

Gayla:  Speaking of  Zombie BBQ, your colorways have such great names – who comes up with them?

Beth: Naming colors is one of our favorite things here. It’s a group effort that usually evolves over a pizza at lunchtime. We started out taking our cue from Lorna Miser and naming colors after streets and neighborhoods.  In Chicago Lakeview, Bittersweet and Pilsen are examples. Then a couple of years ago we decided to get a little silly.  Turtle Rodeo and Zombie BBQ came from that era. Most recently we gone back to our roots with a little twist and named all of our fall 2011 colors after Chicago icons like Navy Pier and Buckingham Fountain.

Gayla:  What makes Lorna’s unique?

Beth: It my sound a little trite, but I like to think that the people here is what makes Lorna’s Laces unique. There are only six of us here so it’s important that everyone gets along. Right now, not only does everyone get along, we genuinely like each other. Every once in a while a spontaneous dance party will break out. Especially on Friday afternoons.

Gayla: That sounds like so much fun!  I can speak from personal experience that everyone I’ve ever met or worked with at Lorna’s Laces really seems to love what they do.

One of the questions I am asked all the time is how to best work with variegated  yarns.  Can you share some tips for working with hand-dyed and multi-colored yarns – ways to avoid undesirable pooling, dye lot issues, that sort of thing?

Beth: My favorite tip for working with hand dyed yarns is to take a deep breath and enjoy them!  Try to remember that they are created by another human being so they will have a few quirks.

Most of my other tricks have been around for awhile and are tried and true. Alternating skeins every two rows is always a good idea. Working with two strands held together will smooth out color differences. This is especially true if one of those skeins has a little texture.

Gayla: What do you like to do when you aren’t dying yarn?

Beth: I’m an avid reader. I begin and end every single day by reading. Mostly fiction, but from time to time I go on a non fiction jag as well. I’ve even been known to read cookbooks cover to cover.

I guess it follows that I love to entertain. A perfect Saturday night for me a table full of good food food surrounded by friends and laughter.

Gayla: I hear you like to bring your pets to work.  Do you have any good stories to share?

Beth: We love  having furry staffers!  One of my favorite stories is that I had two Great Danes when I bought Lorna’s Laces. One named Hank and the other named Pearl. Is it any wonder that I found myself here in the yarn world?

Gayla: It sounds like it was meant to be!  What’s  your favorite thing about owning Lorna’s Laces?

Beth: That’s such a hard question! I think my favorite thing about owning Lorna’s Laces is bringing love into other people’s lives.  You see, I have this theory. I believe that all needlework comes from a place of love. Whether you are knitting for yourself, your family or a total stranger, you stitch a little piece of yourself into every piece. I like the idea that my hands dye yarn that goes into a knitter’s hands who creates a thing of beauty and passes the love along.

Gayla:  I absolutely love that and I think it’s so true.  I think so much love goes into knitter’s projects, especially when it’s for someone we love.

Beth, thank you so much for giving us a glimpse into your color filled world!

I’ll be back later this week to share a fun sock I’m working on in Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock and a contest!