(In case you missed it, I introduce this series here.)
In late March 2023, Rebecca, my daughter joined me in
Scotland and we spent a month traveling around the country—mostly hiking the
mountains and magnificent coastlines.
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Hiking on the magnificent Isle of Skye.
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Hiking on the magnificent coast of Scotland east of Inverness
Suspicious that the changes in my right breast might be something serious, I decided to return with her to New Orleans where I began my year of tests, surgeries, radiation, rehab, and healing.
Before leaving the UK, however, I had discovered a
mail-order supplier of fiber goods there that far surpassed anything I have
found in the States. World of Wool’s selection of quality wool and other fibers
for spinning is amazing and the prices are one half to two-thirds less than prices
in the US. Of course there is a much higher percentage of people who spin,
knit, felt, and weave in the UK than here. Almost every variety of wool-producing
sheep species is represented in the company’s repertoire. The challenge is in
the choosing. I had tried one of their products (see description in Cream
Crunch photo) while in Scotland and later decided to place a HUGE order to
bring home with me. In the end, I spent over $200 US and brought home enough
fiber to keep me happy for at least a year or so!
Rebecca kept asking me how I was going to pack all that
product in our luggage and stay within our free checked-bag limit. I joked that
it would make good padding for all the whisky she was buying. And in the end,
it did prove useful to protect several bottles of Scotch in her large bag!
I could not wait to start spinning some of my new luscious fiber and brought my little Nano e-spinner on the plane with me! The color of the fiber from World of Wool is called “Passion” and is a blend of various dyed merino wool tops.
World of Wool’s “Blaze” wool blend.
I have always been drawn by these colors. It is a blend of several colors of dyed merino wool and was the first item from this order that I completed spinning.
World of Wool’s 100 % Merino Wool top
I purchased 1.6 Kg of this wool, but only 570 grams are
left. During the winter I made the sweater
from this luscious fiber. More about that project in a future post.
World of Wool’s “Cream Crunch”
This is the first product I purchased from World of Wool. After falling in love with it, I ended up ordering an additional 1.6 Kg (that is over three pounds!) of it. For less than $50 I had enough to make a couple sweaters.
World of Wool’s Coconut Cake
This is 500 grams of 70% Merino and 30% Nylon, which makes a
good sock yarn. The nylon makes the socks wear longer.
World of Wool’s Botany Lap Waste
Botany Lap Waste is World of Wool’s version of a “Mystery Box.” These are the small bits left over at the end of processing. For about $12, I got over a pound of various fibers. They are great for ingredients for many kinds of projects. I was able to identify a few of the fibers from the web site, but most of them are truly mysteries but fun to experiment with. As you can see, I have already spun up several of the samples.
World of Wool’s Undyed Sock Yarn
The only pre-spun yarn I bought from World of Wool was this undyed 70% superwash merino/30% Bamboo blend. This is great for socks. Merino wicks moisture away and the bamboo adds strength (additional wear) to the socks like nylon. However bamboo is biodegradable, naturally antibacterial and it is a renewable resource.
“Superwash” just means that the wool has been treated so it won't shrink or felt when washed. It is safe to just throw the finished socks in the washing machine.
World of Wool: Non-Wool Fibers
From time to time, I enjoy experimenting with various fibers
that are not animal products. Many of these originate from plants. One
interesting fiber that World of Wool offered was Pearl Fiber. It is made from
eucalyptus cellulose and is infused with pearl powder which contains amino acids and trace
elements.
Bio
Nylon is a new type of nylon that is bio-degradable and uses renewable
resources as a base.
I
always like to keep a bit of Tencel in my collection. It adds a special
shininess to my blended yarns.
I often blend these kinds of fibers with wool to get
different effects in the look or feel of the final yarn.