Wool-Mix Offcuts

What can these wool offcuts be used for?

The wool-mix offcuts are a bag of white wool and PLA offcuts with various sizes, densities and thicknesses. It really is a bag of all-sorts! The offcuts could be used for many crafty things including being cut into shapes or used for children’s projects, dyed, made into mosaics and all kinds of fun! They could also be used as stuffing for cushions, dog beds or soft toys. 

But really, the sky is the limit with these wool offcuts so we encourage you to use your imagination and get creative! When you’ve been busy crafting and creating, do send us some photos. We love seeing your creations!

Why is wool a good material to use for projects and crafting?

Wool is fantastic for using for projects and crafting. It is the warmest and most environmentally-friendly type of filling you can use.

The wool in this filling is washed which smooths the wool fibres making them more pleasant to the touch and to work with. Although this filling is lightweight, wool is a strong fibre which ensures the filling doesn’t beard or migrate as you work with it.  In fact, wool fibres are able to resist tearing and are able to be bent back on themselves over 20,000 times without breaking (basically, it is very forgiving when working with it!).

Wool is a great material for filling because of lots of naturally occurring properties. One of its main properties is that it is hygroscopic. This means that as the humidity of the surrounding air rises and falls, the fibre absorbs and releases water vapour. Heat is generated and retained during the absorption phase, which makes wool multi-climatic and trans-seasonal. When it needs to be, it is a natural insulator, reacting to changes in body temperature. This capacity to absorb and release moisture also makes it naturally breathable and odour resistant (releasing sweat into the air before bacteria has a chance to develop and produce unpleasant body odour). As we mentioned earlier, wool is also very resilient which means when using it in pillows, compared to synthetic alternatives it is able to retain its shape in the long term without sagging or losing its shape.

You can read more about the properties of wool on the Campaign for Wool website.

What is PLA?

Some of the wool offcuts in the mixed bag will contain PLA. PLA stands for polylactic acid which is a bioplastic lofting agent made from corn starch or sugar cane. PLA is an eco-friendly and effective alternative to polyester fibres. Combining a proportion of PLA with the wool makes a more light and lofty material. The added loftiness provides extra insulating properties without adding weight.