I would like to talk about the common fiber, wool. Wool is a time period that refers to many types of animal fibers. Probably the most widely known is the fiber from sheep. Wool has very unique properties. It has nice insulating ability which keeps in warmth, or in hot climates, keeps out heat. It’s naturally flame retardant. Instead of flashing into fire when a match is applied, it will smolder often extinguishing itself. Sheep’s wool makes glorious sock material as it is absorbent and will keep the wearer warm even when it gets wet. Scotsmen in the highlands would remove their kilts and soak them in streams and put them back on to keep out wind and stay warmer. Not many man made fibers can boast these attributes. It has three major drawbacks. Some people are allergic to the proteins within the wool, the fiber is attractive to clothes moths which eat it and cause holes, and one should use care in washing items made from it to forestall felting and shrinkage. There are several treatments to avoid clothes moths, like storing woolens within the freezer, or moth balls, or many herbal remedies. There are not any solutions to the allergy except not to wear wool. And beneath is how I wash woolen items.
Wool varies in texture and use depending on the breed of sheep it comes from. There are sheep specifically bred to produce the finest, softest wool. One of the best known breed is Merino. Incredibly soft yarn is made from Merino fiber. Ramboulet is one other soft wool breed. Yarn made from these types of fiber will be worn subsequent to the skin with very little discomfort within the way of scratchiness… unless one is allergic to wool. The very finest and softest Merino is called Cashwool. It is as soft as cashmere. On the other finish of the spectrum is very coarse, thick fiber utilized in making felt and rugs. All the rest in between types range in softness and are what makes up the bulk of knitting yarns. Of course, there are additionally an ideal many blends utilizing wool as one of many components. Wool always adds it’s properties to the blend.
Wool of all types could be spun soft and airy, hard and strong. Softly spun lofty yarn is the warmest because it traps air between the fibers and this aids in keeping the wearer warm. Tightly spun yarn is very robust and is not often used for garments but for weaving rugs and different applications that require strength.
Sheep’s wool comes in natural colors of white, cream, black, shades of gray and infrequently brown. It additionally dyes well with either natural vegetable dyes or chemical dyes. As long as somebody is not allergic to it, it is a flexible choice of yarn to knit with.
As mentioned previously, woolen garments should be washed very carefully. Unless the garment is made from yarn that specifically states it is machine washable, do not wash wool items within the washing machine. The cleaning soap, agitation and changing temperature of water will make woolens felt and shrink, thereby ruining them. Machine washable wool is normally merino combined with at least 10 % nylon to stop it from shrinking during machine washing. These are the only items that may go into a washing machine. Other products have to be hand washed. Fill up a basin or sink with lukewarm water. Add your favorite clothes soap…enough to make a little lather. Gently immerse the article within the water avoiding agitating or rubbing the fabric together because that will cause it to felt and shrink. Let it soak for a time and gently squeeze the soapy water by the fabric, being careful to not be too rough. Treating the fiber roughly will cause the shrinkage. Lift the garment out of the water, carefully trying to assist the load evenly.. I often put it in a colander to empty while I change the water. Make note, by feel, the temperature of the water you are dumping. It does not should be actual, but the rinse water needs to be near the same temperature or the wool will be shocked into shrinking. Gently squeeze the soapy water out of the garment, don’t wring it out, once more, this roughness will cause felting. Lay it gently within the water and let it soak. Repeat this process until you might be satisfied the soap has been rinsed out. There are 2 ways one can remove the surplus water to facilitate drying. One is to do something called “wuzzing” and the opposite is to make use of the spin cycle of the washing machine. Wuzzing is an old practice and it is much like what happens during the spin cycle. Put the garment in a pillow case, take it outside and quite quickly, rotate it by means of the air above your head or at your side to cause the water to fling out. Keep doing this until no more water comes out. To use the spin cycle, put the garment in a pillow case and into the washer, add something to balance the machine and turn the spin cycle on. When the cycle is over, remove the garment. It is now ready to dry.
Lay a towel or towels on the floor and place the garment on the towel(s). Arrange it to the form it should have, or within the case of a sweater, to the dimensions it was knit to. Clean out any wrinkles and let it air dry. This is called blocking and it must be executed each time the article is washed.
With proper care and protection from moths, wool articles can final quite a long time. It’s still certainly one of my first decisions to work with for winter wear, either all wool or blends. If you have not ever worked with it, attempt it. You will then develop into part of a tradition of wool working that may be a few thousand years old.
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