Christine English
I think [the Guild is] a way to give people knowledge about a topic they would have a hard time finding out about otherwise, and it gives them contact with people that share common interests and passions and can be mentors for them and friends. And it's a way to preserve some of this knowledge... There's a knowledge that's been passed down for years among fibre people and the Guild is the way to preserve it and to pass it on.
Christine English joined the Kingston Handloom Weavers and Spinners in 1994 after moving to the Kingston area. English's interest in sheep extends back to her childhood in California where her family owned a small flock. She has over twenty-five years of experience as a shepherd, and for much of this time she has specialized in producing wool for handspinners. She graduated with distinction from the Ontario Handweavers and Spinners Spinning Certificate Program in 2000. Beginning in the 1990s, English added imported Romney sheep to her flock of roughly 200 animals. The Romney sheep were selected for their soft, crimped wool in a variety of colours ideal for spinning and knitting. In 2007, she sold her purebred Romneys to the Stoddard Family Farm, and in 2008, sold her remaining sheep when she returned to university to pursue a Master's degree.
Here she discusses her early interest in sheep and her involvement in KHWS:
English explains the process of sheep breeding and describes wool production in the region:
For more on sheep breeding and wool production in the Kingston region, see this article about Icelandic wool producer Stefania Dignum (née Sveinbjarnardottir).
