A good night’s sheep

With the launch of its new exclusive collection of 100 per cent British wool mattresses on 12 October, the family-run Wrought Iron and Brass Bed Co. hopes to increase the recognition and value of this wonderful and sustainable natural product. ‘The inspiration for the new range was people phoning us, almost daily, asking

“I’m vegetarian, am I able to sleep on one of your mattresses?”,’ says founder and managing director, Amanda Thompson. ‘The question surprised me, because wool needs to be shorn for the welfare of the animals. A lot of people think wool is an end of life process, but it’s not and the amount of time taken in the care and welfare of the sheep deserves to be recognised,’ she adds.

The Natural Comfort collection of five mattresses is upholstered with 100 per cent British wool – validated and sourced through the British Wool scheme.

‘As well as wanting to encourage consumers to start questioning where the wool in their mattress has come from, we also want them to ask how much wool it actually contains,’ says Amanda.

Valuing and championing the authenticity and heritage of sustainable British wool is another environmental string in the bow of the company that was the first UK iron bed manufacturer to be certified as carbon neutral, powers its workshop with 100 per cent renewable energy, and sources bed slats from Fsc-certified suppliers.

‘When we started our journey to explore the authenticity of wool mattresses in this country and develop our own exclusive range, we were amazed by the love, skill and labour that goes into validating this outstanding natural material by the farmers and the Wool Board,’ says Harry Thompson, head of brand development and marketing. ‘To this day, wool grading is still done by hand, sight and smell – it takes three years to complete an apprenticeship to become a junior grader. Grading is not based on breed but on texture, quality, colour, grease… So many elements go into the grading process, which helps ensure nothing is wasted, and every gram of wool is used,’ he adds.

‘British wool deserves to have greater value than it does; the whole country was founded on the wool trade,’ explains Amanda. ‘This new mattress range is about the sustainability of the product and giving respect to the natural material and its heritage.’

Graham Clarke, director of marketing at British Wool adds: ‘British Wool is delighted to work with the Wrought Iron & Brass Bed Co. on this exciting new collection.’

Far left: Company founder and managing director, Amanda Thompson, with some of the sheep that are providing their woolly jumpers for use in a further range of mattresses launching later this year

Below: The Natural Comfort range features 100 per cent British wool and is handmade by a small, independent family company in Yorkshire exclusively for the Wrought Iron & Brass Bed Co. Prices range from £995 for a single to £3,995 for a king size

Left: The wool used in the mattresses is carefully and meticulously graded by hand, sight and smell, with many elements going into this traditional process