tags:: Fashion

Why Wool?

Wool is nature's high performance fabric.

Performance

The fibers wick moisture naturally and resist smell, because they absorb it and then let it out again when water passes through them. You can wash wool less often.

Because the fibers naturally roll up a bit (crimp), it's rather stretchy.

This also results in a lot of air in between the fibers, which keeps you warm during winter and is very breathable simultaneously. So wool can work well both in hot and in cold weather.

Sustainable

Wool is made from sheep who have to be sheared every year. Usually these sheep live on grassland, so they are a reason to have more nature on the planet. Farmers need to care for the sheep and the grass for it to work well. The sheep help sustain the cycle of nature: them eating grass helps the grass grow and sequester more carbon, them walking helps sustain the soil and their shit feeds the plants.

Wool naturally degrades, so you can use your old garments as food for the plants. Plastic just ends up on landfill and never disappeears.

Feeling

The "woolen" type of wool, made from thick and rather short fibers, can feel quite prickly but it's also the cheapest form.

Other types of wool, merino, alpaca, vicuna, cashmere, have much thinner fibers and the worsted weave filters out long fibers, so they are much more elegant, can be thinner and are much less prickly.

Care

When wool is wet and stressed, it can felt, making the fibers stick together and the garment shrink.

Wash it without fabric softener, otherwise the absorbing properties of the fiber are destroyed.

Don't spin wool quickly and let it dry flat, not in a drying machine.

One tip I've seen is rolling it inside out tightly and putting that in a bag. The idea is that, because it's so tight, it can't really rub so prevents the felting.