Toot! Toot! …we’re blowing our own horn.
Head Shepherd Pam has just returned from the Howard County Fairgrounds just west of Baltimore. She garnered high marks at this year’s Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival. Well, more to the point, her sheep did well in the Fleece Show and Sale — the largest in the country. Flora’s steely grey fleece was awarded the second place red ribbon in the Coopworth breed class.
AND! In the same Breed Competition, Hatchtown ewe Star’s white fleece was proclaimed El Primo, number one, first place, blue ribbon entry.
Interest in wool and the animals producing it certainly seem to be on the upturn. There was a record 820 fleeces registered for the MDSW’s fleece show and sale this year.
Big News: We opened a shop offering Hatchtown handspindles, Nøstepindes, Orfooks and such online for the first time in awhile. We sent announcements to the fiber folks who had been on “the list” the longest. The e-commerce software has performed really well. There has not been a single instance where two spinners thought they’d both bought the same spindle.
Farmyard Update:The tractor arrived home from the shop with its new crankshaft AND battery — runs better than ever! …and we should have it all paid for by this time next year. 
Gemma loves her day-glo bandanna
A skein of Pam’s yarn went BLUE in the Garden State.
Two of fiber artists’ favorite woods: Purpleheart from South America and Padauk (I say “PA-dook”) out of Africa are always featured prominently in every batch of handspindles emerging from the woodshop.
A passel of Hatchtown low whorl “Production” handspindles.
Check Out the FAVORITE FARMERS MARKETs in Your State
The results are in! Good news: thanks to visitors here and to the Hatchtown Farm Facebook Page the Damariscotta Farmers Market was voted the favorite “small” (16-30 vendors) market in Maine …it bears mentioning that Maine does not have a single “large” market (56+ vendors).
Congratulations to the market, its vendors and, OF COURSE, to all of us! We are all winners!
Hatchtown Farm is tucked away on the Pemaquid peninsula …
Award-winning Fleeces!
…in midcoast Maine, a delightful spot steeped in history and natural beauty. We share this old farm with Skye, a geriatric Border Collie, Gemma, a bouncy Goldendoodle puppy, Hera and Hermes, a sister and brother team of felines, a flock of registered Coopworth sheep and a mixed bag of laying hens with a sometime smattering of pigs and ??? thrown in just to thwart possible boredom.
Fresh eggs
We’re a small farm, working sustainably and with a hands on approach to all that we do. Our customers tell us that they value our friendly, personalized service and the attention to detail that goes into all of our products. In our tools, fiber and food you will find excellent quality, simple beauty and joy in their use.
We invite you to visit us if you’re in the area …see the sheep …fondle some fiber …take away wonderful memories and maybe some goodies! If you can’t come to Bristol, visit our Farm Journal for all the latest news.
