This is my guide to washing raw fleece in small batches. You can use this guide whether you're a spinner or a felter!
Before a good wash, wool is sticky and smelly (think of a petting zoo...yes, it smells like that). It usually contains bits of plants (vegetable matter) and lots of dirt. Wool will most likely have poop on some parts as well!
Wool is sticky due to lanolin which is a waxy substance secreted by sheep to protect their wool from the elements. Some spinners like to leave a little bit of lanolin left on their wool, but felters do not!
Before washing wool for the first time, and after much internet research, I had 2 worries.
I was paranoid that I wouldn't remove all of the lanolin which in turn would cause my wool to become sticky again once dry....or even worse, that it would cause my needle felted creations to slowly become sticky!
I was also scared that I'd felt the wool, ruining it by doing so. Yikes!
If you follow this guide, the lanolin will vanish and your wool will not felt!!
Supplies
- Plastic Bins/Tubs
- Potato Masher
- Rubber Gloves
- Hot Water
- Unwashed Wool
- Blue Dawn Soap*
* Other resources suggest using Dawn Original but that no longer exists and blue Dawn Ultra works perfectly. Why does it have to be blue? Because the other colors (orange, green, etc) are antibacterial and contain ingredients that aren't kind to your fibers.
Total Time: Approximately 1 hour
(With lots of waiting time in between to catch up on a show, drink a glass of wine, or read a book!!)
Quick Preview:
1. Get your wool ready. I recommend cutting off any poopie parts. I chose not to remove the vegetable matter at this time (hint: it's easiest to remove when your wool is wet or once the lanolin is fully removed).
2. Fill up your tub(s) with the hottest sink water available. You can add water from your stove if you would like the bath to be hotter. You can use water only from the stove also (you know it's hot enough when it comes to a near boil).
3. Squirt some Dawn in the tubs after the water has been added. Do not slosh it around or let it bubble because soap suds and agitation create felt!! And we don't want that!
4. Add the wool. I used a potato masher to lightly press on the wool to ensure it was fully soaked. You can use your hands but I found that the water was too hot for me.
5. Let your wool sit for around 15 minutes (check the water to make sure it isn't cooling down - the lanolin may stick to your wool again if it gets too cool).
6. Take your wool out of the water that is now a yucky, murky brown!!!
7. Repeat steps 2 through 6. You may want to do this a total of 3 times. In my experience, 2 rounds of washing works well if your water is hot enough. You know you're done when the bath water is clear.
8. Rinse the wool under cold water. You can squeeze it to ensure all the soap suds are removed.
9. Hang to dry (I used plastic hangers and hung them on a canopy I have outside). You may also lay wool on a table or screen to dry. I found hanging works well.
10. Once dry, shake your wool outside. You'll probably see some loose fibers and lots of veggie matter falling from the wool. At this time, you can pick the remaining, stubborn pieces of veggie matter out.
11. Prepare your wool! Your wool is ready to be dyed, carded, etc. If you card your wool, almost all of the veggie matter will be removed.
Before and after:
Now, sit back and admire your clean, fluffy wool!
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