A more in depth look at the sheep to scarf:

1. Most domestic sheep don’t shed their coats, so they need shearing every year to keep them healthy and comfortable.
2. The fleece is then skirted to remove short and dirty bits of fiber. This fleece is big enough for at least 5 scarves.
3. Scouring (washing) the wool is done using hot water and soap to remove the dirt and lanolin (grease).
4. Carding the cleaned wool opens and aligns the fibers to prepare for spinning.
5. The wool comes off the drum carder in huge fluffy batts!
6. A spinning wheel is used to spin the batts into yarn. Yes this wheel looks like an antique, but it is less than 10 years old. This is usually the longest part of the process.
7. Once spun, the yarn is wound into skeins to keep it neat and tidy.
8. Now it’s back to the pot to use acid dyes and hot water to dye some of the yarn.
9. Measuring the warp (vertical strands) for the loom comes next, followed by threading those strands through the heddle.
10. Next comes weaving. This style of loom is called a rigid heddle loom.
11. Once weaving is complete the fabric is hem stitched followed by twisting the fringe and another soak in hot water to wet finish the scarf (not shown).
12. Now it’s all complete and time to show off to Walter what his wool turned into. He only cared about the oats I brought him!
Whether done by hand or machine, all these steps are still necessary. Did you realize there was so much behind your natural fiber garments?💗

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