My favourite materials: wool, wool and wool
June 10, 2021
Wool is my favourite textile fibre in clothing, in interior design and also when it comes to weaving. Read more about the good qualities wool naturally has, and the possibilities they offer!
A versatile weaving material
Out of the materials I use in my products, wool is definitely the one I like most both as I weave and for the result. In general wool is quite easy to work with when preparing a warp and then weaving a fabric, and its elasticity gives a fabric a really nice, smooth finish when it’s taken off the loom. And what would be nicer than weaving fabric that feels nice and warm from the beginning?
When I weave with very thin yarns, I more often use wool as weft than as warp. A thin wool yarn can be used for the warp as well as long as the weaver is patient enough not a haste and break the warp threads while weaving. A little thicker wool is great as warp and weaving wool weft to a wool warp produces beautiful woollen fabrics.
What’s also interesting about wool is how it lends itself to different kinds of finishes like felting the fabric or brushing its surface. Finishing a wool fabric like this may give it a completely different character compared to the original fabric!
A local fibre
In addition to being versatile as a fibre, I’m also attracted to the fact that at its best wool can be a completely local material. In Finland, where other fibres like cotton and linen are not grown, local wool is that one material with a local supply chain.
Finnish wool is a beautiful material that is unfortunately not utilized to its full potential: according to some estimates half of Finnish wool is not not used for yarn or anything else, and is therefore simply thrown away. At the moment Finnish wool is getting more press and consumers are more and more interested in Finnish wool especially for knitting. However, production quantities are so small so far that it’s sometimes hard to buy a batch big enough for several products of a given yarn.
When it’s necessary to use wool that’s not local, it’s sometimes possible to choose a yarn that’s made with Norwegian wool, for example. It’s not as local as Finnish wool, but it’s pretty close!
Wool’s good qualities
In both interior design and clothing, wool is a great choice both for its soft finish and for its good qualities. These natural qualities make wool a really good fibre for home textiles, clothing and accessories:
- Wool is warm and it breathes well, keeping you comfortable
- It’s usually sufficient to air a wool garment/product instead of washing it
- Wool is naturally dirt repellent: especially non-liquid stains often sit on top of the fibre and don’t sink in
- Wool is naturally flame resistant as it burns slowly with a self-extinguishing flame
- Wool doesn’t attract dust and it’s not prone to static cling
Natural perfection for interior design
Wool creates compelling, soft, touchable surface textures like no other fibre, which makes wool a truly great choice for any interior textile. Because wool doesn’t attract dust or create static cling, it’s a very pleasant material for decorative pieces (throws, pillow cases etc.) and upholstery fabrics alike.
In my web shop you’ll find chunky throws handwoven with 100 % wool in several designs that fit many types of interiors. In Fall 2021 there will also be new interior products added to the web shop, so stay tuned! New products are first announced in my newsletter, which you can sign up for by clicking here.