As I worked last night on a project, I was thinking of the many ways wool can be used.
Of course, there is the beautiful clothing and blankets made from wool. Sometimes it feels scratchy, while other times, it is butter soft and you just want to cuddle up with it.
There are also options to buy wool insulation for your home. With R-values ranging from R-9 at 2.36 inches all the way up to R-46 at 11.82 inches. Toasty!
Some of the things I have used with the wool from the fleeces I have purchased over the years.
- Spinning for yarn
- felting for wool applique
- stuffing for projects
One of my favorite uses of wool in the past few years was the day I assembled my new Jensen Tina II spinning wheel that had arrived after a few months from when my order was placed. I did all the staining, waxing, and getting all the pieces prepped to assemble it and I found on the legs was coming up a tad short and making my beautiful new wheel (Mr. Darcy, for future reference) wobble and not sit squarely upon the floor.
My solution. Take a pinch of my “Bonny” Shetland fleece and stuff it up in the hole to help get the wheel to sit correctly. It worked.
“Bonny & Friends”
©the1764shepherdess.com
Bonny is the lovely sheep with the black faced/white coat in the back near the wondering chicken. She was my pick from Ananda Farms in Port Ludlow, WA. The rest of the lovies are her sheep mates.
Historically, long after I am gone, someone might take Mr. Darcy apart and find a wad of wool stuffed up in the table and not know the history of that little bit of Bonny’s fleece. Maybe I should tape a note with a picture under the table of the wheel for future reference. Yes, I think I will.
Last night, I made a sturdy bobbin lace pillow. Traditionally they are stuffed with cut-up straw and stuffed to the gill. I decided I did not want to spend the whole evening cutting up straw so I went with a package of pine shavings and a fleece I had purchased from a local gal. It was a good use for the fleece that I might not otherwise get to spinning it.
The bobbin lace pillow weighs 5 lbs 12 oz. after all was done. It has a linen casing for the main body and a cover made in ticking with three layers of felted wool sewn down the the center.
I found this lovely photo online today. Dated 1936; Germany. Look at the sweet lace being made by the young woman in the center. I can see that being sewn on a towel or pillow case. I wonder what she did with it after all.
I have not yet done any bobbin lace work, but I have plans to get started soon and thought this was a great project to make (and use wool).
“Wool, it’s 100% natural, renewable, and sustainable.”
The perfect wool campaign.
