Meet Tanya Hynes | Yarn dyer, Yarn Enthusiast & Yarn Shop Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tanya Hynes and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tanya, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I had a dog named Basil and she was a very sick dog and towards the end of her young life (only 5 years)I decided I needed a distraction because I knew she’d be gone. I saw some hand dyed yarn on etsy and I thought I could do that. At the time no one was giving up “trade secrets” so I got some bare yarn and taught myself through trial and error. My initial thought was that I could crochet items with my own yarn and create some really great original pieces. It was soon after I started playing around with dyeing that I posted some of my own hand dyed to show off what inhad be learning and someone asked to buy them.

10 years later and I’m still dyeing beautiful colors. This is how I support my family and I could not be more grateful.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am an Indie dyer. I hand dye yarn and fiber. I love creating new colorways. It brings me so much joy to see someone else find value in what I’ve created. I am more of a light handed dyer. I like to apply the dye and let the water do the work. It’s such a natural process for me. I could dye for hours and hours and never get bored.

I am most proud of not giving up when things got hard or frustrating or when sales are slow. I keep going. I keep showing up. When someone said no I found someone who said yes.

It’s a lot of hard work and long hours. I am a one woman business and also a mother to 6 so I have had to juggle those things. When I started I was pregnant with my 6th and dyeing In my kitchen. I eventually moved to the garage and now I have my own physical shop and work area.

There are challenges in every business. In my experience I had many. I had frozen water pipes to the garage in the winter, I navigated a divorce that cut my work time in half for 2 years, the economy, slow sales, the algorithm, over booked, shipping delays, supply issues, covid, kids getting sick. You name it. But I never gave up. Sometimes I had to adjust and pivot. Change direction, do something different. I love my job. I love connecting with people and creating beauty.

I want people to see me and understand that you can do anything you put your mind to. I know it’s cliché but it’s true. I failed color theory in school, I did well in school but not at art. I had my kids young, I am a recovering addict(22 years clean), I’m unorganized, I have adhd. I had people tell me what I was doing was dumb, they made fun of my “hobby”. I did it anyway. I did it despite people not believing in me. I did it because people said I couldn’t. I believed in me. I knew I could. And 10 years later I can’t imagine this not being my job. If you believe in yourself you can do it. It will be long hours and setbacks but everything is figureoutable. Yes that’s a word.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
There is so much to see in Northeastern Ohio.

We have to get in a baseball game. Go Guardians!
The zoo is amazing. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is worth the drive.
The west side market is iconic. You have to get a Gyro there, yum!
Catch a concert at Blossom music!

Pastatina in Mentor is an amazing Italian restaurant. Make a reservation!

Don Tequila is my go to Mexican restaurant.

Tommy’s subs is my favorite sandwich shop. Perfect for those concerts and picnics.

If you are gluten free there is the cutest bakery right next door to us. Lavender Jones Macarons.

We have amazing metroparks here. Pick one and enjoy. You can’t go wrong.

We have quite a large group of yarn shops too! We have 19 shops this year for the Yarn Discovery Tour. It’s a shop hop for yarn lovers. It runs September 3rd to September 21st. So come for the week and see us all.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The Fiber Addicts are a group of people who have followed me for 10 years. We all originally met at a yarn shop called Fiber Addiction. Through thick and thin they have been there supporting me. We add new members and we become friends for life. I would not be here without them.

Website: https://Www.cornbreadandhoney.com

Instagram: Cornbreadandhoney

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cornbreadandhoneycrochet?mibextid=ZbWKwL

Other:
Facebook group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/cornbreadandhoneyclub/?ref=share&mibextid=NSMWBT)

Image Credits
Cornbread and Honey