From the Archives: The Shearer

Later today Sue Blacker will be here to talk about shearing processes. We felt that we couldn’t possibly preface this with anything else but The Rapping Shearer, AKA Adam McClure. We first shared this back in 2015 and Wovemberists just loved it. Here it is again for your enjoyment. : : : : : WOVEMBER… Continue Reading From the Archives: The Shearer

Hebridean Seafaring Sheep in the UK

We’re on our last leg of the EU tour of sheep and wool and have landed back in the native land of team Wovember: the UK. We’ve featured loads of content about the UK on the Wovember blog in the past so rather than trying to summarise everything we know about wool from this country… Continue Reading Hebridean Seafaring Sheep in the UK

Svenska får och ull – Swedish sheep and wool

Today on our EU tour of sheep and wool we are in Sweden, where the word for sheep is får and the word for wool is ull. Wikipedia list the following breeds as being native to Sweden – Dala-fur; Gotland; Gute; Roslag and Rya. However, several additional Swedish breeds are mentioned in the fantastic The… Continue Reading Svenska får och ull – Swedish sheep and wool

Ovejas y lana en España – sheep and wool in Spain

Today on our EU tour of sheep and wool we are in Spain where the word for sheep is oveja and the word for wool is lana. Spain is where the infamous merino originates from and to give some historical context, we shall begin by quoting from the excellent tome The Wool Trade Past and… Continue Reading Ovejas y lana en España – sheep and wool in Spain

Slovenske ovce in volna – Slovenian sheep and wool

Today continuing our EU sheep and wool tour we are in Slovenia where the word for sheep is ovce, and the word for wool is volna. The two sheep breeds listed as being native to Slovenia are the Jezersko-Solčava breed and the Bovec sheep. The Jezersko-Solčava sheep originate in Jezersko. ETA:  we also learnt from one… Continue Reading Slovenske ovce in volna – Slovenian sheep and wool

Journey of a wool yarn #2

Earlier in Wovember Louise spoke to Joy McMillan, from The Knitting Goddess about her plans to design a 100% Yorkshire wool yarn. In conversation with Louise and Joy was Claire Tunney, of Fourways Dorsets, whose fleece was going into the yarn. You can listen to their interview here. An important part of the process of creating… Continue Reading Journey of a wool yarn #2

Ovce a vlna na slovenskom – sheep and wool in Slovakia

Today we resume our tour of EU sheep and wool and find ourselves in Slovakia – The Slovak Republic – where the word for sheep is ovce and the word for wool is vlna. These words feel familiar; ovce is also the word for sheep in the Czech Republic and ovca is used in Bulgaria… Continue Reading Ovce a vlna na slovenskom – sheep and wool in Slovakia

#woolbodypositive

We interrupt the flow of the EU sheep breeds series to invite you to join an open discussion: #woolbodypositive. This evening we have a special Q&A with Sonya Philip whom you may know from her iconic project “100 acts of sewing“. Wovember is about challenging the fashion industry’s misuse of the terms wool, woolly and… Continue Reading #woolbodypositive

Oi și lână în România – sheep and wool in Romania

Today for our EU Wovember Words post we are in Romania where the word for sheep is oaie, and the word for wool is lână. To begin with the sheep (info from this report); In Romania there are two autochthon native breeds: Turcana, named also Zackel (“mountain peasant”, “Romanian”) or Walachian (“Romanian”), is the sheep… Continue Reading Oi și lână în România – sheep and wool in Romania

Ovelhas e lãs portuguesas – the work of Rosa pomar

Today our EU themed Wovember Words is travelling to Portugal where the word for sheep is ovelha, and the word for wool is lã. We are taking all our inspiration and some of our quotes for this post from Rosa Pomar. Rosa has been documenting and researching the sheep breeds and textile traditions of Portugal for… Continue Reading Ovelhas e lãs portuguesas – the work of Rosa pomar