RUATANIWHA DYE STUDIO

- AT home with wool

We are Steph and Duncan, the hands and hearts behind the yarns at Ruataniwha Dye Studio (pronounced rooah-tuni-far). We are itinerant scientists, originally from New Zealand and currently living amidst the canals of Delft in the Netherlands.

We both hold doctoral degrees in scientific disciplines and left our home in 2009 to expand our research careers in academia. This journey has taken us to Leeds in northern England, with its rich textile history, to Jena on the edge of eastern Germany’s Thüringer Wald, and onwards to Japan’s frenetic capital city, where Ruataniwha Dye Studio began.

Inspired by the prominent yarn manufacturing in Yorkshire and the wealth of British sheep breeds, Steph rekindled a fondness for wool and knitting that began while growing up with the thousands of sheep her parents farmed overlooking the Ruataniwha Inlet in New Zealand's South Island. Meanwhile, Duncan became the proud owner of a large collection of hand-knits.

Irrespective of where we find ourselves in the world, our yarns and the knitwear we create from them connect us to all the places we now know as home. Using our scientific knowledge to create beautiful yarns inspired by the wealth of plants, rocks, creatures and landscapes we've encountered on our treks and travels, feels like we've found our place in the world.