on Kate Graham has been the tenant farmer at Shankend, in the Scottish Borders, since September 2010. Not only has she successfully run her sheep sponsorship scheme this year (more of which we will be learning about later this week) but work at Shankend certainly keep her busy. With the average age of UK farmers reaching… Continue Reading Adventures in farming: Kate from Shankend
on ‘Shetland ewes from Yell. Taken at the National Association of North Atlantic Sheep and Wool Conference in 2013. Lovely wise faces.’ – Jeni Reid
on The practice of putting bells on one’s sheep is no longer widespread in the UK, however there is some evidence that it was once much more popular in the UK than it is today, and sheep bells still seem to be used in other parts of Europe. The sounds of sheep bells featured in a… Continue Reading Wovember Words: Canisters and Cluckets
on At Wovember we take great pleasure in enabling you to wear 100% wool. Always keen to promote the myriad of breed yarns available in the UK, Louise has selected some of the UK’s more characterful wool yarns to bring out the most in a design. I get a lot of email enquiries from people who… Continue Reading Which wool?
on ‘This was taken at dusk near Voe, Shetland. It’s the veiw from Colin Johnston’s farm and I was struck by the shoreline. It looks just like the edges of a Hap Shawl. Maybe I’ve spent too much time staring at knitting!’ – Jeni Reid And for comparison, an actual hap shawl blocking in the Shetland… Continue Reading Hap Shawl Landscape
on When I was small I was fascinated by a packaged cake of soap in a friend’s loo. I went home to say that next door that had soap made from “fat wool”. Wool fat soap is actually lanolin, the natural wax (not fat) in sheep’s wool, which waterproofs our woolly friends and provides anti-fungal protection.… Continue Reading Wovember Words: Wool fat 'recipe'
on Continuing from today’s WOVEMBER WORDS, this evening we have a wonderful piece by Ella Gordon on the joys of using a traditional Shetland jumper board. This piece was originally published here on Ella’s blog. If WOVEMBER readers do not already read Ella’s blog it is really an amazing treasure trove of woolly lore. She writes… Continue Reading Boarding
on ‘Naturally dyed BFL fibre. This was dyed with elderberries which changed colour from pink to green when I added an alkaline modifier.’ – Jeni Reid
on Yesterday we featured a film from the 1950s produced by the Whirlpool Corporation which really pushed the idea that wool is impossible to care for. However with the right information, caring for WOOL need not be a horrible chore and is the best way to extend its lifespan. In today’s WOVEMBER WORDS we share an… Continue Reading Wovember Words: tips for blocking stranded colourwork YOKES
on It is Friday night, folks, and we thought we would share some extraordinary archival footage detailing the complex relationship between WOOL and PETROL. These films are both from the 1950s and were found in the amazing Prelinger Archives. They are each very interesting when viewed from a certain critical perspective. The first film is called… Continue Reading Friday Night Vi-EWE-ing with WOVEMBER!