Western Mass Fiber Shed pop-up shop, the pillows I long for, and a brief Germany update

Perusing my Instagram feed this morning I came across two posts that immediately made me wish I was home. Re-posting them here for the folks who may not be on Instagram.

First, Western Mass Fibershed is having a pop up

In case the image isn’t loading correctly, the pop-up is at Swanson's Fabrics on Saturday April 17 from 11-2. On offer, locally produced wool fabrics in three fabrics and two-ply knitting yarns, all produced, spun, and woven locally. Contact email for questions, WesternMassFibershed@gmail.com

The Western Mass Fibershed had a table at Boston Farm & Fiber Festival last year (ah the before time) complete with samples of some of their woven goods (including a pair of very stylish fabric covered heeled oxfords!) and I have been longing to get my hands on some ever since.

Also on my Instagram feed, pillows from Full Circle Wool.

My neck, weirdly crunched from sleeping on IKEA pillows, longs for one of these.

Someday.

In Germany news, we have moved into our new long term apartment. We now live on the 4rth floor of a five story apartment block built in 1982. The attic is a “drying room” where everyone hangs their clotheslines. There are also communal clothesline in a small green space in front of the building. I hung our first batch of laundry yesterday. It was not a very neatly hung collection of tea towels and bath towels, and I was expecting a stern talking to for hanging out such messy washing from one of the older ladies. I think I did get scolded by a stern older lady the other day for accidentally biking back from the grocery store without my bike helmet. It’s that sort of place.

And just across the river, there are sheep! I am trying to work up the courage (and the German) to leave a note for the farmer inquiring about fleece, or the fiber community here.

Wool sponges!

One of my favorite things about wool is how many uses it can to put to. A quick perusal of most books about sheep will result in a long list of things we used to use wool for before the invention of plastics and/or the shift towards enormous flocks of sheep far away from centers of population made lower value uses for excess wool unprofitable. Wool could be a comfy mattress or pillow stuffing (and people are starting to do this again). Wool can be insulation (another use that is coming back). Wool can be cordage and sails (I would love to see this in action).

Apparently wool also makes great sponges. Poking through my instagram feed this morning I came across a post by @ladysheepshearer memorializing her beloved wool sponge, finally worn through after several years of use and now on to the next use, “probably holding water in a plant pot”. The sponge in question was made by @stargrazers of Full Circle Wool in Petaluma, California who sells them in a pack of two on Etsy (July 2020 Update: They have moved off of Etsy and developed their own website; sponges now available at www.fullcirclewool.com, and they also make pillows!). They also wrote a wonderful article about the dance between sheep and shearer during the shearing process for Fibershed.com, Choreography and Skill: How Sheep are Sheared.

Now off to buy myself some wool sponges…

(Apologies for not reposting the original Instagram post I am referencing - such things are beyond my pre-caffeinated brain).

July 2020: post edited to update link to wool sponges