Products and Crafts Research Report for The

CULTURE AND NATURE: THE EUROPEAN HERITAGE OF SHEEP FARMING AND PASTORAL LIFE

RESEARCH THEME: PRODUCTS AND CRAFTS

RESEARCH REPORT FOR THE UK

By Simon Bell and Gemma Bell

Estonian University of Life Sciences

November 2011

The CANEPAL project is co-funded by the European Commission, Directorate General Education and Culture, CULTURE 2007-2013.Project no: 508090-CU-1-2010-1-HU-CULTURE-VOL11

This report reflects the authors’ view and the Commission is not liable for any use that may be made of the information contained herein

1. INTRODUCTION

Since the UK has for a long time been a major sheep rearing country, products made from wool have traditionally been and still are important, although, while woollen articles of clothing remain popular, most wool used in fine woollen production is imported from Australia or New Zealand. Home produced wool is not economically valuable at the present time except in some key specialist industries where high quality, unique or luxury products are made. Conversely, the craft side of wool has seen something of a renaissance with small producers making high quality products from special and often rare breeds raised by themselves. Other products such as sheepskins or items made of horn are of minor interest by comparison with woollen products.

From prehistoric times wool has been one of the main textiles used for clothing and bedding. The wool from the small early native breeds was progressively improved until some of the varieties bred today emerged, with longer and finer wool as well as being suited to the often harsh climates of the upland areas where most of the national flock is to be found. Wool, flax and hemp provided the main yarn capable of being spun and woven into some kind of material and used for almost all clothing until cotton appeared in large quantities in the 18th century. The climate of the UK requires warm and rainproof clothing and since cotton is not a good insulator, woollen dresses, coats and suits remained necessary for winter and outer garments and still perform that role today. A well-cut tweed jacket or suit is still one of the best types of clothes for wearing in the British climate and is the number one choice for smartly dressed men. Wool remains warm even if it gets wet, which is not the case with cotton. Woven, felted, knitted or crocheted wool is widely worn and home production of knitted products remains a popular home craft or hobby.

The first heyday of wool production on a commercial scale in England was in the mediaeval period when large flocks of sheep managed by monasteries or large feudal estates provided work for many women or spinsters (the word has become synonymous with unmarried women) who would take raw wool, card it and spin it, at first using a spindle and later a spinning wheel. The spun yarn was then woven by male weavers and later washed, fulled, trimmed and baled for export through organisations such as the Wool staple (a corruption of the name of the Flemish town of Etaples) to Flanders and Artois.

In the industrial revolution mechanised spinning and weaving was invented, powered first by water in the fast-flowing rivers of the Pennines and later by steam engines. Centres of wool production arose in the West Riding of Yorkshire such as in the towns of Bradford, Halifax and Huddersfield and in the Scottish Borders such as in Galashiels and Selkirk. While mere shadows of their former selves, these areas still produce high quality cloth from both home produced and imported wool. Carpets also became popular as people became more affluent and carpeting using home produced wool is still a popular and very hard wearing warm floor covering. As well as these areas there were industries making blankets in Wales and Gloucestershire and the specialised Harris Tweed industry, which still uses hand looms, in the Outer Hebridean islands of Scotland

As a result of this long heritage the UK still produces many high quality woollen goods ranging from knitted pullovers and socks, woven kilts and skirts, suits and jackets, rugs and blankets, knotted carpets and felted items such as slippers and hats.

This report presents a selection of both traditional and contemporary products, some produced in factories and some in small workshops as well as some crafts not made from sheep products but related to sheep farming.

1.1 History of wool production in the UK

In Neolithic times wool cloth was being spun and woven in the UK. To spin it people took a clump of wool in one hand and drew it out, twisting it into a thread with the fingers of the other hand. The result was a thick uneven yarn. Later, a crude spindle was developed by fitting a stone or clay ring to the end of a short wooden stick. The ring acted as a flywheel and enabled the drawn-out yarn to be wound on to the spindle. This method of spinning was used for thousands of years and is still used by peasant communities in various parts of the world.

Weaving is the criss-crossing of threads of wool to make cloth. The first loom consisted of a beam from which lengths of yarn (warps) were hung and weighted at the lower end by stones. The `weft' yarn was threaded to and fro across the suspended `warp' yarns in an over-and-under action, like darning a sock. As with spinning, this system was used for thousands of years

There were now two implements: one for spinning, and one for weaving spun wool. The loom was the first to be improved. The warp threads were laid out horizontally across a frame instead of being suspended vertically from a beam. Then alternate warp threads were tied to sticks (healds) which were raised and lowered in turn. Through the aperture formed between the two sets of warp threads the wooden needle carrying the weft thread could be passed in one motion, thus avoiding the laborious 'over- and- under' action. Later still, the needle was hollowed out into a 'shuttle' so that it could carry within itself a reel of weft thread, as it does in a modern loom.

By the time the Romans invaded these islands in 55 BC the Britons had developed a wool industry and this was encouraged by their new masters. Roman emperors cherished British woollen cloth-'so fine it was comparable with a spider's web'.

Although the Roam industry largely disappeared during the Dark Ages it is known that by the eighth century Britain was exporting woollen fabrics to the Continent and after the arrival of the Norman conquerors in 1066 the industry expanded.By the twelfth century wool was becoming England's greatest national asset. Cloth making was widespread, particularly in the large towns of southern and eastern England nearest the Continent. In 1331 King Edward III encouraged Flemish master weavers to settle here. They and their descendants were to play a part in the final ascendancy of English cloth

The export trade in raw wool recovered and the first half of the fourteenth century was a time of prosperity for English wool farmers But it was overshadowed by the long war with France (export taxes on wool were one of the principal means of financing the war) and by bubonic plague (the Black Death) which in 1349 decimated the population. In many villages as much as three-quarters of the population died. This led to an increase of the sheep flocks, for there were not enough people left to cultivate the land for arable crops

Cloth from English looms quickly achieved an international reputation. From being primarily a raw wool exporter, England became in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries a manufacturer and exporter of cloth. At the end of the fifteenth century England was `largely a nation of sheep farmers and cloth manufacturers'. The next two centuries saw continued expansion of the industry despite conflicts at home and abroad.

Despite setbacks, raw wool exporting expanded, and so also did manufacturing of wool fabrics. This was becoming both specialized and localized. The West Country had three advantages-extensive sheep pastures, a supply of soft water for washing, scouring and dyeing, and water-power to drive milling machinery. Similarly, the Pennine districts of Yorkshire and Lancashire had soft water, and water power from steeply graded streams. In East Anglia there was soft water but no hills or fast- running streams to provide power for `fulling' mills. Fulling, or milling, is a shrinking process which makes the fabric firmer and its surface more compact. Instead, East Anglia used the long, fine wool from its native sheep breeds to produce a cloth which did not require the fulling process. This was the type of cloth we today call 'worsted'- after the Norfolk village of Worstead. For four hundred years East Anglia dominated the worsted trade, with skills inherited from the Flemish settlers of 1331.

In the sixteenth century Huguenot weavers, persecuted in France, sought refuge here and brought their skills with them. England began to surpass Flanders in woollen manufacture which, by the end of the seventeenth century, comprised two- thirds of the value of her exports. Radical changes lay ahead, in the geographical disposition of the industry, in labour use and in manufacturing processes. By 1770 output of worsted from the West Riding of Yorkshire equaled that of East Anglia. The cloth manufacturing `conurbation' began to take shape-Leeds, Bradford, Halifax, Huddersfield, Wakefield.

The Industrial Revolution of 1750-1850 caused upheaval. It ushered in new inventions stemming from the Lancashire cotton industry, to mechanize and speed dramatically the processes of spinning and weaving. Manufacturing methods, unchanged Since the revival of the trade in the fourteenth century, were now superseded. Mechanization had been opposed in the past and it was again. In the Luddite riots of 1812 equipment was destroyed by organized bands of workers, who feared they would lose employment. But machinery won the day. The older industries in such areas as East Anglia, where opposition had been most bitter, declined and never recovered. They were overtaken by Yorkshire where machinery was more readily accepted. The younger industry jumped ahead and never lost its lead, supported by abundant supplies of cheap coal to generate steam and, later, electrical power. Other important manufacturing centres developed in Scotland, famed for its 4

tweeds; and in the West Country which specialized in production of high quality woven carpets.

1.2 Wool manufacturing

The two main types of woven cloth are woollen and worsted. The yarn for woollen cloth is usually made from short-fibred wool and during processing the individual fibres are thoroughly intermingled. In the worsted process, which uses the longer-fibred wools, the individual fibres are separated and laid approximately parallel to each other.

Weaving is not involved in all types of wool fabrics. Knitted fabrics are made with a single, continuous yarn (instead of two-warp and weft-as in woven cloth) and the threads are interlooped. Felt-probably the first-ever wool fabric-is made by intermingling the wool fibres and compressing them into a sheet.

Because of the different purposes for which it is suited, raw wool must first be graded and sorted-long wools for the worsted trade, short wools mainly for the woollen trade, the tough springy wools for carpets and so on. Whatever the final requirement, wool must next be cleaned in a soap solution to remove its natural grease and dirt. Machinery is then employed to extract seeds and burrs and other foreign matter which may remain. Short wools are passed through `scribbling' and `carding' machinery which produces 'slivers'-thin continuous ropes of wool-which in the spinning process are drawn out and twisted into yarn. The longer wools for worsted production are put through a 'comb' which produces ropes of parallel fibres known as 'tops'. These are then drawn out into finer and finer threads in the spinning process.

Before weaving, the yarn which is to form coloured cloths is dyed. Then on to the modern, high-speed power loom which can create an inexhaustible variety of weaves and patterns. There are a number of finishing processes. Woollen cloth must be shrunk and felted by being passed through rollers and soap solutions. The nap (surface) is raised by passing the cloth through drums set with the heads of teasels (spiky plants) and then cropped by a kind of mowing machine. Raising and cropping are not needed for worsted where the aim is to display, rather than conceal, the weave pattern. Despite the development of complex and elaborate machinery, the basic principles of spinning and weaving machines are the same as when primitive man first twisted raw wool into yarn between his fingers and then, on his crude loom, wove it into cloth.

The medieval loom remained substantially unchanged until, in 1733, John Kay invented his `flying shuttle' which was driven mechanically to and fro across the warp without having to be thrown 'by the weaver. Automatic spinning followed. Sir Richard Arkwright’s roller-spinning machine was horse-driven at first and later, by water power, when it became known as the waterframe. In 1767 James Hargreaves, a Blackburn weaver, invented the spinning jenny, with multiple spindles mounted side by side. With this development one spinner could operate as many as 120 spindles at a time.

A hand loom pre-flying shuttle

John Kay’s flying shuttle

Samuel Crompton's spinning mule combined the principles of both the water-frame and the jenny. The spindles were no longer stationary but mounted on a movable carriage. This travelled away from the rollers, drawing-out the wool threads which at the same time were twisted by the spindles to impart strength--a principle still used on spindles all over the world.

Crompton’s spinning mule (modern reconstruction)

Other machines were invented for preparing wool for weaving. They included the combing machine, used in the worsted industry for combing the long wool fibres parallel and removing the short fibres; and the carding machine for opening out, blending and straightening the wool fibres after cleansing.

Eventually power was applied to all the mechanical processes. By the beginning of the nineteenth century Watt's steam engine was in the Yorkshire mills. By the end of the century hand loom weaving had practically disappeared. The way now lay ahead for continuing development-added refinements, improved quality and increased speed of manufacture which have made wool today, as in the past, the most valued fabric in the world.

2. TRADITIONAL WOVEN FABRICS AND PRODUCTS

2.1Tweed

Tweed is a hard wearing, rather coarse textured cloth woven from wools from native breeds and made primarily in Scotland in either the Borders or in the Outer Hebrides (Harris tweed).The original name of the cloth was tweel, Scots for twill, it being woven in a twilled rather than a plain pattern. A traditional story has the name coming about almost by chance. About 1830, a London merchant received a letter from a Hawick firm about some tweels. The London merchant misinterpreted the handwriting, understanding it to be a trade-name taken from the river Tweed that flows through the Scottish Borders textile area. Subsequently the goods were advertised as Tweed, and the name has remained ever since.

At first the rough homespun cloth was for domestic use - though "Galashiels Grey" was more widely known - and it was not until Sir Walter Scott astounded London society in the 1820s, with his checked trousers made from a black-and-white check derived from the plaids of the Peeblesshire shepherds, that the world first took to tweed. Later, Prince Albert and Queen Victoria fuelled demand when they discovered the subtle shades that Border mills were introducing. 7

As long ago as the 13th century, wool was being exported from the town of Galashiels to Flanders and soon a small hand weaving trade grew up. The woollen industry became the basis of Galashiels' prosperity, reflected in the motto of the Galashiels Manufacturer's Corporation "We dye to live and live to die", founded in 1777. Border tweed is made from the fleeces of the Scottish blackface and cheviot sheep raised locally and as well as being used for clothing is also used for upholstery and furnishings.

Tweed is used for suiting for both men and women. The tweed jacket or sports coat is both a hard wearing and practical garment made in a range of traditional and contemporary patterns of herringbone or check. It is also made into two or three- piece suits often used for “country wear” as opposed to city wear. Heavier weights are also used for overcoats. The tailoring of jackets (which may be worn with corduroy, moleskin or twill trousers and waistcoats or pullovers when it is cold) needs skill to ensure that the heavy material hangs right. Often a cap is also made of tweed, traditional country wear for outdoor activites such as fishing or shooting.

Border tweed jacket in typical muted colours and windowpane check pattern.

Detail of border tweed weave

Tweed cap of traditional design

2.1.1 Harris Tweed (Clò Mór or Clò na Hearadh in Gaelic) is a cloth that has been hand woven by the islanders on the Isles of Harris, Lewis, Uist and Barra in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, using local wool.

Traditional Harris Tweed was characterized by subtle flecks of colour achieved through the use of vegetable dyes, including the lichen dyes called "crottle" (Parmelia saxatalis) and Parmelia omphaloides which give deep red- or purple-brown and rusty orange respectively). These lichens are the origin of the distinctive scent of older Harris Tweed.

During the economic difficulties of the Highland potato famine of 1846-7, Catherine Murray, Countess of Dunmore was instrumental in the promotion and development of Harris Tweed as a sustainable and local industry. Recognising its sales potential, she had the Murray family tartan copied in tweed by the local weavers and suits were made for the Dunmore estate gamekeepers and gillies. Proving a success, Lady Dunmore sought to widen the market by removing the irregularities caused by dyeing, spinning and weaving (all done by hand) in order to bring it in line with machine-made cloth. She achieved this by organising and financing training in Alloa for the Harris weavers and by the late 1840s a London market was established which led to an increase in sales of tweed.

With the industrial revolution the Scottish mainland turned to mechanization, but the Outer Hebrides retained their traditional processes of manufacturing cloth. Until the middle of the 19th century the cloth was only produced for personal use within the local market. It was not until between 1903 and 1906 that the tweed-making industry in Lewis significantly expanded. Production increased until the peak figure of 7.6 million yards was reached in 1966. However the Harris Tweed industry declined along with textile industries in the rest of Europe. Harris Tweed has survived because of its distinctive quality and the fact that it is protected by an act of Parliament limiting the use of the Sovereign's Orb trademark to tweeds made in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland.

Around 95 per cent of Harris Tweed production is from the mills of Harris Tweed Hebrides in Shawbost, Isle of Lewis, a company founded in 2007 and who have had success in extending the appeal of this "champagne of fabrics." They export to more than 40 countries and supply designers like Alexander McQueen, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren and Steven Alan. While Harris Tweed has been mainly a fashion fabric in recent years, Harris Tweed Hebrides has broken new ground by supplying most of the interiors fabrics for Glasgow's first five-star hotel, Blythswood Square, said to be the biggest interiors project since Harris Tweed was used in the fitting out of the ocean liner QE2 in the 1960s. The company has picked up two major honours: Textile Brand of the Year for 2009 at the Scottish Fashion Awards, and premier award for Outstanding Style Achievement at the Scottish Style Awards, reflecting a renaissance of interest in the fabric and its use by cutting-edge designers.

Every length of cloth is stamped with the official Orb symbol, trademarked by the Harris Tweed Association in 1909, when Harris Tweed was defined as "hand-spun, hand-woven and dyed by the crofters and cottars in the Outer Hebrides."

Machine-spinning and vat-dyeing have since replaced hand methods, and only weaving is now done in the home under the governance of the Harris Tweed Authority established by an act of Parliament in 1993. Harris Tweed is now defined as "hand woven by the islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides, finished in the islands of Harris, Lewis, North Uist, Benbecula, South Uist and Barra and their several purtenances (The Outer Hebrides) and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides."

A weaver at work in the Outer Hebrides, weaving Harris tweed cloth on a typical hand operated loom.

Detail of the distinctive texture of Harris tweed

The trademark of Harris tweed

A Harris tweed jacket with leather buttons

2.2 The Scottish Kilt

The kilt is a knee-length garment with pleats at the rear, originating in the traditional dress of men and boys in the Scottish Highlands of the 16th century and earlier. Since the 19th century it has become associated with the wider culture of Scotland in general, or with Celtic (and more specifically Gaelic) heritage even more broadly. It is most often made of woollen cloth in a tartan pattern, although plain colours may be used.

Although the kilt is most often worn on formal occasions and at Highland games and sports events, it has also been adapted as an item of fashionable informal male clothing in recent years, returning to its roots as an everyday garment.

The Scottish kilt displays uniqueness of design, construction, and convention which differentiate it from other garments fitting the general description. It is a tailored garment that is wrapped around the wearer's body at the natural waist (between the lowest rib and the hip) starting from one side (usually the wearer's left), around the 12

front and back and across the front again to the opposite side. The fastenings consist of straps and buckles on both ends, the strap on the inside end usually passing through a slit in the waistband to be buckled on the outside; alternatively it may remain inside the waistband and be buckled inside.

A kilt covers the body from the waist down to the centre of the knees. The overlapping layers in front are called "aprons" and are flat; the single layer of fabric around the sides and back is pleated. A kilt pin is fastened to the front apron on the free corner (but is not passed through the layer below, as its function is to add weight). Underwear may or may not be worn, as the wearer prefers, although tradition has it that a "true Scotsman" should wear nothing under his kilt. The Scottish Tartans Authority, however, has described the practice as childish and unhygienic.

The typical kilt as is made of twill woven worsted wool. The twill weave used for kilts is a "2–2 type", meaning that each weft thread passes over and under two warp threads at a time. The result is a distinctive diagonal-weave pattern in the fabric which is called the twill line. This kind of twill, when woven according to a given sett or written colour pattern, is called tartan. In contrast kilts worn by Irish pipers are made from solid-colour cloth, with saffron or green being the most widely used colours.

Kilting fabric weights are given in ounces per yard and run from the very-heavy, regimental worsted of approximately 18–22 ounces (510–620 g) down to a light worsted of about 10–11 ounces (280–310 g). The most common weights for kilts are 13 ounces (370 g) and 16 ounces (450 g). The heavier weights are more appropriate for cooler weather, while the lighter weights would tend to be selected for warmer weather or for active use, such as Highland dancing. Some patterns are available in only a few weights.

A modern kilt for a typical adult uses about 6–8 yards of single-width (about 26– 30 inches) or about 3–4 yards of double-width (about 54–60 inches) tartan fabric. Double-width fabric is woven so that the pattern exactly matches on the selvage. Kilts are usually made without a hem because a hem would make the garment too bulky and cause it to hang incorrectly. The exact amount of fabric needed depends upon several factors including the size of the sett, the number of pleats put into the garment, and the size of the person. For a full kilt, 8 yards of fabric would be used regardless of size and the number of pleats and depth of pleat would be adjusted according to their size. For a very large waist, it may be necessary to use 9 yards of cloth.

One of the most-distinctive features of the authentic Scots kilt is the tartan pattern, the sett, it exhibits. The association of particular patterns with individual clans and families can be traced back perhaps one or two centuries. It was only in the 19th- century Victorian era that the system of named tartans known today began to be systematically recorded and formalized, mostly by weaving companies for mercantile purposes. Up until this point, Highland tartans held regional associations rather than being identified with any particular clan.

Today there are also tartans for districts, counties, societies and corporations. There are also setts for states and provinces; schools and universities; sporting activities; individuals; and commemorative and simple generic patterns that anybody can wear.

Tartans are commercially woven in four standard colour variations that describe the overall tone. "Ancient" or "Old" colours may be characterized by a slightly faded look intended to resemble the vegetable dyes that were once used, although in some cases "Old" simply identifies a tartan that was in use before the current one. Ancient greens and blues are lighter while reds appear orange. "Modern" colours are bright and show off modern aniline dyeing methods. The colours are bright red, dark hunter green, and usually navy blue. "Weathered" or "Reproduction" colours simulate the look of older cloth weathered by the elements. Greens turn to light brown, blues become gray, and reds are a deeper wine colour. The last colour variation is "Muted" which tends toward earth tones. The greens are olive, blues are slate blue, and red is an even deeper wine colour. This means that of the approximately 3,500 registered tartans available in the Scottish Tartans Authority database as of 2004 there are four possible colour variations for each, resulting in around 14,000 recognised tartan choices.

Setts may be registered with the International Tartan Index (ITI) of the charitable organisation Scottish Tartans Authority (STA), which maintains a collection of fabric samples characterized by name and thread count, for free, and/or registered with the Scottish Register of Tartans (SRT) of the statutory body the National Archives of Scotland (NAS), if the tartan meets NAS's criteria, for UK₤70 as of 2010. Although many tartans are added every year, most of the registered patterns available today were created in the 19th century onward by commercial weavers who worked with a large variety of colours. The rise of Highland romanticism and the growing Anglicisation of Scottish culture by the Victorians at the time led to registering tartans with clan names. Before that, most of these patterns were more connected to geographical regions than to any clan. There is therefore nothing symbolic about the colours, and nothing about the patterns is a reflection of the status of the wearer.

The traditional and original highland dress before the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion

The “country” style which includes a tweed jacket and waistcoat

The formal modern way of wearing the kilt with a dinner jacket and waistocat.

2.3 Knitwear

The Scottish Borders are also famous for high quality knitwear using home produced Shetland as well as imported merino wool and also imported cashmere. As well as the more industrial production local styles and techniques of knitting can still be found.

2.3.3 Fair isle

Fair Isle is a traditional knitting technique used to create patterns with multiple colours. It is named after Fair Isle, a tiny island in the north of Scotland, that forms part of the Shetland Islands. Fair Isle knitting gained a considerable popularity when the Prince of Wales (later to become Edward VIII) wore Fair Isle “tank tops” in public in 1921. Traditional Fair Isle patterns have a limited palette of five or so colours, use only two colours per row, are worked in the round, and limit the length of a run of any particular colour.

Some people use the term "Fair Isle" to refer to any colourwork knitting where stitches are knit alternately in various colours, with the unused colours stranded across the back of the work. Others use the term "stranded colourwork" for the generic technique, and reserve the term "Fair Isle" for the characteristic patterns of the Shetland Islands.

Basic two-colour Fair Isle requires no new techniques beyond the basic knit stitch. (The purl stitch is not used.) At each knit stitch, there are two available "active" colours of yarn; one is drawn through to make the knit stitch, and the other is simply held behind the piece, carried as a loose strand of yarn behind the just-made stitch. Knitters who are comfortable with both English style and Continental style knitting can carry one colour with their right hand and one with their left, which is probably easiest, although it is also possible to simply use two different fingers for the two colours of yarn and knit both using the same style.

Traditional Fair Isle patterns normally had no more than two or three consecutive stitches of any given colour, because they were stranded, and too many consecutive stitches of one colour means a very long strand of the other, quite easy to catch with a finger or button. A more modern variation is woven Fair Isle, where the unused strand is held in slightly different positions relative to the needles and thereby woven into the fabric, still invisible from the front, but trapped closely against the back of the piece. This permits a nearly limitless variety of patterns with considerably larger blocks of colour.

Traditional Fair Isle sweater construction usually involves knitting the body of the sweater in the round, sewing or otherwise fastening the work securely where the arm holes are to go, and then cutting the knit fabric to make the armholes. These cuts are known as steeks in American knitting terminology, but not in the Shetland Isles where the Fair Isle technique was developed.

Beginning in the 1990s, the term "Fair Isle" has been applied very generally and loosely to any stranded colour knitting which has no relation to the knitting of Fair Isle or any of the other Shetland Islands.

Fair isle jumpers in traditional pattern

Detail of the Fair isle stitches

2.4 English carpets

Knotted pile carpet weaving technology probably came to England in the early 16th century with Flemish Calvinists fleeing religious persecution. Because many of these weavers settled in South-eastern England in Norwich the 14 extant 16th and 17th century carpets are sometimes referred to as "Norwich carpets." These works are

either adaptations of Anatolian or Indo-Persian designs or employ Elizabethan- Jacobean scrolling vines and blossoms. All but one are dated or bear a coat of arms. Like the French, English weavers used the symmetrical knot. There are documented and surviving examples of carpets from three 18th-century manufactories: Exeter (1756–1761, owned by Claude Passavant, 3 extant carpets), Moorfields (1752–1806, owned by Thomas Moore, 5 extant carpets), and Axminster (1755–1835, owned by Thomas Whitty, numerous extant carpets). Exeter and Moorfields were both staffed with renegade weavers from the French Savonnerie and, therefore, employ the weaving structure of that factory and Perrot-inspired designs. Neoclassical designer Robert Adam supplied designs for both Moorfields and Axminster carpets based on Roman floor mosaics and coffered ceilings. Some of the most well-known rugs of his design were made for Syon House, Osterley House, Harewood House, Saltram House, and Newby Hall. Six of Axminster carpets are known as the "Lansdowne" group. These have a tripartite design with reeded circles and baskets of flowers in the central panel flanked by diamond lozenges in the side panels. Axminster Rococo designs often have a brown ground and include birds copied from popular, contemporary engravings. Even now a large percentage of the 55,000 population town still seek employment in this industry. The town of Wilton, Wiltshire is also known for its carpet weaving, which dates back to the 18th century.

An Axminster carpet from the 18th or 19th century, showing a classically derived design to fit a house furnished in the same period

An example of traditional Axminster fitted carpeting used in hotels and other places where hard wearing surfaces are required

Axminster stair carpeting designed to fit the width of a staircase.

2.5 Sheepskin

Sheepskin is used for rugs, coats and gilets, boots (such as the currently popular Ugg boot which originated in Australia), gloves, slippers and hats. Many of these are traditional in style, others more fashionable. Rugs may be made from single hides and tanned with the fleece on to provide a warm and shaggy rug. Increasingly there is a modern reinterpretation of sheepskin rugs by using natural variations of brown and white fleeces stitched together into geometric patterns suitable for more contemporary interior décor. One company which does this is Skyeskyns of the Isle of Skye in Scotland.

Mosaic rug made from different natural coloured sheepskins by Skyeskyns

Hat, gilet, gloves and boots made from sheepskin for fashionable wea

2.4 Contemporary woollen products

Today there is a growth in organic wool production, the use of self-coloured wool from special breeds and also a fresh approach to upholstery to suit contemporary styles while celebrating the best qualities of British design.

2.4.1 Shetland wool

Shetland Organics is a community interest company that produces organic wool and products made from it using the wool of the Shetland sheep in its natural colours. This follows a tradition of sailors using Shetland wool as it is well-known for its insulating properties. Shetland sheep are raised in the Shetland Islands to the north of Scotland. Only the wool produced by certain local farms can be processed to meet the standards of the Soil Association which is the UK certifier of all things organic. This wool is spun into Soil Association and Global Organic Textile Standard certified yarn using only natural techniques. The colours of the natural wool are used to give the variety to the patterns. Much of the production is knitting, which is very traditional to the Shetlands.

Two examples of knitted products from Shetland Organics

2.4.2 Modern interiors

The company Anta, based in Edinburgh, produces a range of interior furnishings, carpets and upholstery to a very high standard of design using Scottish tweed and other woollen materials.

A sofa upholstered in modern tweed by Anta

A throw and a cushion by Anta

2.4.3 Home crafts and hobbies

Spinning, dying wool and weaving of knitting are popular crafts in the UK and small businesses supply hobbyists with materials, often produced from special local breeds and dyed using natural materials. These can frequently be seen at the local and county shows where competitions for handicrafts are also still popular events.

An example of a craft tent at an agricultural show where different wools are presented for hobbyists

An example of a display of fine wools for the hobby market

An example of a hand knitted pullover made from Suffolk cross wool by Hannalin Crafts in Cumbria in England

2.4 Other crafts related to sheep

There are other crafts which may be related to sheep and which may or may not use sheep products.

2.4.1 Shepherds crooks

The shepherd’s crook is a long stick with a curved head designed to help the shepherd catch a sheep by the leg or neck. A crook is of immense help to the shepherd while guiding the animals on a rough terrain. The shepherd’s crook is traditionally made from steam-bent wood, from a curved and craved wooden head on a straight stick or carved and polished horn, especially rams horn from any of the horned breeds. The length of the shepherd’s crook may vary according to the person, a taller person wanting a longer crook. However those used for shepherding have a neck crook and are longer than the “show sticks.” The market or fancy sticks are generally made of horn with the head of the crook having carvings on of birds, squirrels or dogs.The shepherd’s crook continues to be used by shepherds across the world. The traditional carved wood shepherd’s crook is still used by many though modern versions of the shepherd’s crook are also widely available. Some versions of the shepherd’s hook may appear more ornamental with their intricately carved hooks but are equally useful. The newer versions are made from light metals which are more handy and sturdy at the same time.

A shepherd’s crook can be also used as a walking stick though it performs a more useful function of helping the shepherd navigate uneven terrain while taking care of 24

the sheep. Besides this, the curved horn of the crook enables the shepherd to catch a goat or sheep that is straying from the herd and also to direct the herd to a particular path. The shepherd may just hang the crook over his arm while walking on normal terrain.

Among sheep farming circles the craft of carving ornamental heads to crooks and exhibiting them in competitions is quite popular. Sheep farmers or shepherds who have flocks of horned sheep may use horn from their own rams.

A crook made of bent wood and a crook with a head made of sheep’s horn

Example of decorative crook with carving on the horn head – a collie dog and a Scottish thistle

Conclusions

Wool in the UK has a long history as an important material and many of the traditions of manufacture have given great prestige to British products. It is ironic that wool 25

itself fetches so little and is more or less a cost to the farmer while woollen products can command high prices.

Wool is undergoing something of a renaissance at the moment and new approaches are being developed to make wool more attractive. Wool has many excellent properties as a material and it is a pity that so much finds its way into house insulation which, while performing a valuable function, misses out on its most useful possibilities.