Taylor @thesoftfolk

Much of the inspiration behind the wool garments I make comes directly from the day to day realities of rural life. This way of living asks a lot from clothing. There are early mornings spent feeding animals in frigid air, drafty homes that never quite hold heat the way you hope they will, long days filled with movement, and the constant presence of dirt, grime, and animal mess. There may be limited water when you are on a cistern, which means doing less laundry and relying on fibres that can truly carry their weight between washes. These are the considerations that shape my designs. Rural life is often portrayed as beautiful and romantic, and I can attest that it absolutely can be. But as Taylor so aptly says, it can also be tough and unrelenting.

Taylor Costa Yates, the first feature in The Rural Folks Series, shared a glimpse into her life in rural Ontario and offered thoughtful advice for those dreaming of a rural life of their own.

When I asked her what an ordinary day looks like, she described a rhythm to her days that includes animal chores, work, cooking meals, and crafting. Her mornings are not rushed. She takes that time for herself and her animals before the workday begins. There are chores to be done, and in winter they take longer, with more tending to ensure everyone is thriving through the cold. Beyond the basics, she spends at least an hour outside each day with her dogs, sometimes in one long stretch and sometimes in pieces woven throughout the day. Nature is not an accessory to her life. It is part of its structure.

The work that fills her hands most days may surprise some. Much of it happens on a laptop or phone. When she left her city job to move rurally, she needed to build something that would sustain this lifestyle. With a background in Media Arts, she moved into digital media marketing and has maintained a handful of clients over the past five years. It is work that allows her flexibility and autonomy, which in turn makes space for the rest of her life to unfold.

In the in between moments, her hands return to older skills. She is relearning and reviving crafts like leatherwork, sewing, and most recently hide tanning. She shares wool yarn from her own sheep through @thesoftfolk and is preparing to launch a website this spring to connect more deeply with her community. She also gives time daily to cooking nourishing meals for herself and her partner, often using food sourced from nearby farms. That act of preparing food from scratch is not separate from rural life.

When I asked what drew her to rural life or keeps her rooted there, she spoke about her childhood memories growing up in the suburbs, where she spent time in her grandmother’s garden, exploring the woods alone, and caring for the pets she had. Those early experiences taught her about what made her feel at ease, connected, and fulfilled. Choosing a rural life was not about chasing an aesthetic. It was about honouring something essential within herself.

I went on to ask Taylor which season she feels most herself in. While she once might have chosen autumn, she now feels most herself in spring. As an April baby, she sees spring as her true new year, when the ideas she has been holding through winter begin to take shape. There is something about that reawakening that feels aligned with who she is. And practically speaking, the shoulder seasons offer her favourite uniform, a wool sweater and vest combination.

I asked her about something small in her daily life that feels meaningful but often goes unnoticed. She described the moment when the chores are done and the animals are fed. Everyone is safe and full. She and her partner sit down together for dinner, often something she has prepared from scratch. It is a simple moment, but it carries weight. They have taken care of everyone for another day. Now they can rest.

For the young women who write to her dreaming of a life like this, unsure where to begin, she offers the following advice: “go to school, travel, meet people, discover who you are and who you are NOT, and if you feel in your heart of hearts that you belong somewhere in the woods or on a farm or in a little cottage, you’ll find your way there. There are so many versions of life to be lived and everyone's path is different. There is no blue print. You just have to know what’s right for you. Rural life can be beautiful and romantic, but it can also be tough and unrelenting. You need to want it enough to stay through both sides of it.”

What I appreciate about Taylor’s perspective is that it holds both truths at once. The satisfaction at the end of the day and the grit required to get there. The creative spark of spring and the long winter harbouring. The digital work that pays the bills and the ancestral skills that root her to the land.

If you are dreaming of a rural life, romanticize it (it is important for us to sit with beauty and hope), but also understand what it will ask of you and whether you are willing to answer.