Category: Wool

Of Interest: Farming with Nature Q&A -Growing Biofibre with Blatnaid Gallagher

Published on by Feltmakers Ireland

Farming for Nature will have Irish-raised wool ambassador Blátnaid Gallagher, a sheep farmer from Co. Galway, in their next Q&A session.

Learn more about Blátnaid and how she manages her farm via a live Zoom session.

When: Tuesday, the 13th of February at 8 PM.

To register for the free Zoom session, visit the Farming for Nature website – https://www.farmingfornature.ie/ask-the-farmer-qa-with-blatnaid-gallagher/

FYI: Wool Facts via Wool in School website

Published on by Feltmakers Ireland

Wool in School is a wool-inspired education company. They are committed to increasing the awareness of wool’s production and sustainable qualities in the school, home, and community environment. They sell colourful display boxes for classrooms containing fun, educational and creative resources, making it easy for teachers to integrate wool education into their curriculum. Additionally, they have kits for families.

They also have a wonderful fact page all about wool. Did you know that wool is UV resistant?

To learn more, visit their website – https://woolinschool.com/wool_qualities/

From Wool in School website

Event: Connemara National Park Celebration – July 1st

Published on by Feltmakers Ireland

Via Suzanna Crampton on the Irish Wool Discussion Group on Facebook –

Connemara National Park will be celebrating its twinning agreement with Terra Nova National Park, Newfoundland, Canada, by undertaking a Heritage Event on Canada Day, the 1st of July 2023.

Among the day’s events is a focus on sheep and wool.

  • The staff in Connemara National Park have been instrumental in efforts to regenerate the Cladoir breed of sheep which was once found throughout Connemara but was pushed to the brink of extinction in recent years. The Cladoir sheep were known to have had fine wool which could be knitted or woven and was an important reason why the breed survived. To celebrate the importance of the wool for the regeneration of the breed, hand shearing of our Cladoir sheep flock will take place throughout the day, with the wool processed on-site in order to have a finished hand-knitted garment by the end of the day.
  • Connemara National Park holds a number of Heritage Breeds which include: Connemara Pony; Cladoir sheep; Galway Sheep; Irish Maol Cattle; and Old Irish Goat. A representative of each of these Rare Breeds Societies will be on hand to discuss each breed’s importance.

For more information, please contact the Visitor Centre on 095 41054 or 087 2919721

For a full schedule, visit the website – https://www.nationalparks.ie/connemara/special-heritage-event-on-july-1st-2023/

Cladoir photograph from Feltmakers Ireland’s book, ‘Exploring Irish Wool for Feltmaking’

Armchair Travel: Sheep to Shawl Competition at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival

Published on by Feltmakers Ireland

Recently, National Public Radio in America had a feature on the Sheep to Shawl Competition at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival, which happened at the beginning of May.

A team comprises one sheep and five people, whose labours are divided into one shearer, three spinners, and a weaver. The team has three hours to shear the sheep, card the wool, spin the wool into yarn, and then weave that yarn into an award-winning shawl.

To listen to the radio program and watch a separate video, see the website: https://www.npr.org/2023/05/15/1176174760/sheep-shawl-fiber-art

Event: Sheep 2023 Returns After 5 Years

Published on by Feltmakers Ireland

‘SHEEP 2023’ will be the largest dedicated sheep industry event of 2023. Following on from very successful past events, this year’s event will take place in a new venue, Gurteen Agricultural College, Roscrea, Co. Tipperary, E53 TP93.

According to the website, there is a ‘Wool Village’ and Sheep Breed Displays!

For more information, visit the website – https://www.teagasc.ie/news–events/national-events/events/sheepopenday-gurteen.php

News: Research and Innovation Hub to Support Irish Grown Wool Council

Published on by Feltmakers Ireland

A newly established research and innovation centre, the Wool Hub, has been set up to offer technical knowledge and expertise to the newly formed, all-island Irish Grown Wool Council (IGWC). The hub aims to assist farmers, sole traders, enterprises, and anyone interested in maximising the potential of this natural Irish-grown resource by providing research, development, and innovation support.

Image of the Uses of Wool via the Circular Bioeconomy Cluster Southwest, MTU. (Note that there is Craft and Felting, but they are disconnected).

Technical aspects of the Wool Hub will be facilitated by the Circular Bioeconomy Cluster Southwest at Munster Technological University (MTU), Tralee. To learn more, see this article on Agriland.