How to clean fresh wool (Straight off the sheep)

Brandr hinn Rusli · Post by **Brandr hinn Rusli** » Wed Nov 15, 2000 1:54 pm

When I was last at Mad Matt's house I bought a big bag of fresh wool that is unsuitable for use in the spinning she does. This is straight from the sheep.

I am building a pair of gambesoied (sp?) cuisses, and would like to use this material as the padding, having made my cuisses (Well really they are a pair of fighting pants.) I want to stuff them with wool.

Only thing is that I need to clean the wool since it currently has all the wood chips and other assorted vegetable material (Little thorn like things) and dirt in it that makes it somewhat unsuitable for padding.

Any suggestions on ways to remove all this stuff? Only one I can think of is to card it all. My thought was to buy 2 of the wire brushes used to groom dogs and use them to card the wool.

Am hoping that hard packed wool alone will be enough for leg protection, if not will insert some sort of 'rigidity' into the cuisse area.

Brandr hinn Rusli

Mad Matt · Post by **Mad Matt** » Wed Nov 15, 2000 2:05 pm

Umm that's not dirt.

Basically you get it clean by just putting it in your kitchen sink and soaking it and swishing it around I think. I'll ask my mom though and get a more clear and correct set of instructions for you.

BTW carding the wool makes it all big and poofy. You're probably better off if you don't have to card it since it'll be denser that way.

The little thorn like things are thistles.

No idea where wood chips came from. Might be some straw and stuff in there.

Also you've gotta basically rip out the big chunks of stuff and chuck it. But I will ask my mom. Or I can give you the phone number and you can talk to her about it yourself.

Or e-mail her here. lynnstitchman@canada.com

Hope this helps a little. It'll be more usefull when I find out some more info.

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The budding mid 14th century German Transitional guy.
Mad Matt's Armory

[This message has been edited by Mad Matt (edited 11-15-2000).]

Frederick The Heavy · Post by **Frederick The Heavy** » Wed Nov 15, 2000 5:33 pm

Oh man. Don't get POD and Gundo going........

Krag · Post by **Krag** » Wed Nov 15, 2000 9:01 pm

You could try showering with your sheep before you shear them next time...or did you want to keep it virgin wool?

.

Krag

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Blaeney · Post by **Blaeney** » Thu Nov 16, 2000 6:56 am

A friend who got some just sheared wool cleaned the lanolin out by running it through the washing machine, you just have to put the wool in something like old stockings or a lingerie bag to stop it going everywhere.

Blaeney

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Thomas Powers · Post by **Thomas Powers** » Thu Nov 16, 2000 10:31 am

Washing the wool with often allow a lot of the vegetable matter to drop out. HOWEVER using the washing machine is the way to felt it into a solid useless mass.

You need to soak it without moving it about and without temperature shocking it, (rinse needs to be same temp as wash) For wool you don't need the natural oils on Dawn dishwashing liquid can be used for less dirty wools or wools that have been scoured and then gotten dirty you can actually use a shampoo on them. Orvus is the preferred cleaner for fine handspinning wools.

For very dirty stuff try to seperate it into locks and let soak a long time. Repeat. You can use a washer on spin cycle to de-water the wool but your SO may hunt you down and kill you---slowly with a spoon! if it was a very dirty fleece. We use window screens to spread out the fleece on to dry

I've been married to a spinster for 16 years now so I get to help do this sort of stuff (lots more fun than moving a crock with 5 gallons of stale urine in it for traditional indigo dyeing!)

Thomas

Brandr hinn Rusli · Post by **Brandr hinn Rusli** » Thu Nov 16, 2000 12:06 pm

Krag - Hey, I only shower with MY sheep. This is wool from Matt's sheep, so he would be responsible for the proper showering of said sheep.

The plan is to use it as padding in a pair of armoured 'pants' since I want something that will fit nicely with my 'unarmoured' look.

Don't care if it felts into a big ugly mess AFTER it is in the pants, but mainly want the thistle thorns and a the wood chunks out since those would hurt like hell if driven through the cloth into leg during a hit. Don't have any use for the lanolin, just want to have the padding from the wool.

Thanks all for the help. I will wash it and then, try and figure out a way to get the thorns and plant stuff out (bark and wood bits).

Man are my roomies gonna love the smell of wet wool in the basement.

Troy · Post by **Troy** » Fri Nov 17, 2000 4:38 pm

Why do I have a picture of Mad Matt in my head, standing in a field with two huge tufts of wool in his hand and a sheep with bald spots running like a banshee away from him?

I dunno, it could just be me.

[This message has been edited by Troy (edited 11-17-2000).]