About Us

Many moons ago, Andrea and Gayle Shackleton, two sisters from Northern California, started designing and knitting sweaters by hand. With Gayle’s background in painting and Andrea’s extensive experience in fiber arts and knitting, the sisters were able to create a beautiful product neither would have been able to develop alone. The Shackleton sisters grew up in New York and moved to California during their childhood. Their broad cultural influence combined with their conjoined love of fine art, heirloom knitting, crochet, antique buttons and trims birthed something unusual to the market.

In 1990, Aid to Artisans (ATA) reached out to see if we would be interested in helping out with a women’s knitting cooperative in Nepal. ATA connects western designers with third world artisan groups with the goal of combining the western designers’ expertise and the indigenous artisan’s skill to create beautiful and superior products. It was in Nepal that the sisters first collaborated with the Association of Craft Producers (ACP). The match proved to be one of the most successful ever facilitated by ATA. With the sisters’ design abilities and ACP’s knitting expertise, the Shackletons experienced the most exciting period of their careers. Anything the sisters designed, ACP could knit. 

Tara Handknits now holds an extensive catalog of creations and artistic experiments still kept dear to the heart. The wearable collection is made of 100% handspun merino wool, which is naturally moisture wicking and maintains insulation even in damp environments. Although merino is naturally less itchy than other wool fibers, each hat and mitten is lined with soft fleece to ensure comfort. 

Tara Handknits is named after the Nepali Goddess of Compassion, representing the ever-expanding 30+ years of collaboration between the Shackleton sisters and the ACP in Kathmandu. With this collaboration, these knitters own their own studios, have increased wages, retirement programs, health care and educational scholarships. In addition, it honors the clean and non-polluting technology used to dye the yarn for all of Tara Handknits’ collections.