The wonder of wool

For comfort, colour, strength and texture, there are few fibres to beat British wool

ANEW generation of designers is rediscovering the unique properties that make wool ideal for carpets, upholstery, curtains and blinds—namely cocooning warmth, strength and luxurious softness. With the growing awareness of environmental issues, the fact that wool is both biodegradable and sustainable is adding to its appeal.

Science has yet to produce a manmade fibre that can match wool’s unique properties. The crimped structure of its fibres makes it naturally elastic, so carpet springs back into shape and fabrics resist wrinkling and sagging. The fibres are also highly absorbent, so they dye richly and remain colourfast.

Wool also offers a host of practical benefits: carpet, curtains and blinds provide superb insulation, helping to reduce energy loss and, therefore, costs, as well as carbon emissions. Wool is naturally fire retardant and its protective waxy coating makes it highly resistant to staining.

Who’s who in wool?

There are more than 60 breeds of sheep in Britain, more than in any other country. Here are five favourites with beautiful, natural wool

Blackface

As its name suggests, this breed can have a black face, but sheep-spotting has its subtleties: it can also be black and white. It’s a horned sheep, with a fleece that can vary from short and fine wool—good for carpets and tweeds—to strong and coarse wool, used in mattress production. Its origins are lost in the mists of time, but monastic records made in the 12th century point to its long history. The Scottish Blackface is the most prolific, especially in the Highlands and the hills of north-east England, but the breed is established across the UK and is among the most numerous in the country.

Romney

The breed not only produces succulent, sweet lamb from its grazing on the saltmarshes of Romney in Kent, but it also grows a long-wool fleece of excellent quality. Sporting a woolly topknot and broad white face, this hardy, large-framed sheep is now found mostly in south-east England, although its adaptability makes it popular beyond our shores. It produces a heavy fleece with some lustre, its wool used for blankets, cloth, carpets and knitting yarns.

Cheviot

This hardy breed originated in the windswept, if beautiful, Cheviot Hills that straddle the border of England and Scotland between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. There is more than one type, but the South Country Cheviot is the one known for its distinctive white face and legs, its dense white fleece forming a rather Elizabethan-style ruff behind the ears. According to the Cheviot Sheep Society, it has a ‘stylish, lively carriage’. The Cheviot produces wool that formed the basis of the Border Tweed industry and is still used for tweed and carpets today.

Herdwick

This breed flourishes on the Lake District fells, where it was farmed by Beatrix Potter, and is popular in small flocks found elsewhere in the UK. The lambs are born with a black fleece, which becomes a distinctive blue-grey as they mature, so that the adult sheep display a sharp contrast between their white faces and legs and blue-grey fleece. The undyed, naturally coloured wool is a favourite for carpets and rugs.

Lleyn

Named after the Llyn Peninsula in North Wales, this breed is said to have been imported from Ireland by a wealthy landlord during the 19th century. It’s now one of the fastest-growing breeds in the UK, thanks to its reputation for easy management. With its white legs, slender white head with a black nose and sometimes a black spot on the ear, this medium-sized sheep produces wool of a good length and quality. Its finer grades can be used in knitwear and cloth, with most of it used to make carpets.