Doggone Art: Lemont Woman Makes Yarn From Pets' Hair

If  Betty Burian Kirk were to hear the expression “hair of the dog,” she would start thinking of scarves and blankets in lovely creams and tans, grays and browns—the colors of sheepdogs, Labradors, collies and deerhounds.

Kirk, a fiber artist, makes yarn from dog hair.  She sends the skeins to her clients so they can knit or crochet a keepsake. Or Kirk can weave a scarf or shawl on one of her many looms.

Kirk started weaving in college. “I loved weaving but couldn’t find a niche for selling,” she said.

Because of the time and materials that had to be factored into pricing, Kirk’s high-quality hand-spun yarns did not make for a thriving business.  

“It was a little nerve-racking,” she said of constantly hearing people say they could buy yarn for much less at a big box store. (That yarn is machine-made and acrylic, not a natural fiber.)

Kirk said she thought about what she could spin that couldn’t be bought at a discount store:  Dog hair!

Kirk has spun yarn from a golden retriever, a Brittany spaniel, a Great Pyrenees, a Bernese Mountain dog, a yellow Labrador, a collie and many other breeds.

Hair to be used for spinning must be brushed out, not cut, Kirk said.  Dogs have an undercoat suitable for spinning, but the top coat is not. Brushing collects the undercoat hairs.

Dogs with the softest undercoats, which make the fluffiest of yarns, are those from Northern climates, such as chows, Samoyeds and huskies.

The dog hair, sometimes bags and bags of it, is washed in dish soap and spread out on screens to dry for a day or two. Kirk can then card (comb through) the hair first or start spinning with a handful of hair. 

Strands are pulled out of from what’s in the hand and wound through the spinning wheel. After the yarn is made, it is washed again.

When a client contacts Kirk after seeing her Web site, calculations  must be made.  How many skeins of yarn are needed, how much hair has been collected, is a woven item wanted?

Jane Bieber of Boston is a recent client of Kirk’s. “When the throw came, I felt like my three dogs had come home,” Bieber said. 

Bieber had been collecting dog hair for years and had two brown grocery bags of it. 

Bieber’s two Scottish deerhounds, Moon Flower and Morning Glory, died in 2009.  A Scottish deerhound won Best in Show this year at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.  

Bieber and her husband also rescued a retired racing greyhound, Ruby Tuesday, who passed away  in 2000.

Bieber said her dark-brown throw is very warm and she uses it while watching TV or reading.  The throw is more coarse than soft because Scottish deerhounds have short, rough hair.

“But the throw feels like my dogs,” Bieber said.

Greyhounds have short, soft hair. Using the small amount of Ruby’s hair that Bieber collected, Kirk weaved two fawn-color strips on the ends of the throw.

“I’ve never met Betty, but she was very good at communicating every step of the way,” Bieber said. “I thought her fees were reasonable and she was very efficient.”

Kirk said a large scarf would require about 8 ounces of yarn for a spinning fee of $80.  Weaving fees start at $70.

Kirk wove a large, almost-black scarf with a few strands of glittery Lurex thread from the hair of the family dog, Lance, a Belgian sheepdog. The Kirks now have a papillon named Loki, whose hair is long and pretty.

“But I don’t even have a half of a brown lunch bag of it” yet because Loki is so small, Kirk said.

Kirk works as a paraprofessional at the Southwest Cook County Cooperative Association and also lectures on weaving. Her Web site is www.bbkirk.com.