The Wool Wire | October 2, 2024
Slowing fast fashion, escaping zombie clothes, celebrating what remains, stitching with naturally dyed thread, and giving cats woolen hats
News snippets from the wool world
Hello, my wool friends!
October is upon us. It's time for apple picking and pumpkin carving, for trick-or-treating and scary ghost stories. Which makes it also the perfect time to watch the brand new, zombie-inspired ad from Woolmark.
Even more powerful than the ad's visuals is its chilling message: "Every synthetic garment ever made still exists in some form, haunting our planet."
This ad comes on the heels of last year's Wear Wool, Not Fossil Fuel ad, which has been seen by more than 193 million people worldwide. Next year, Woolmark plans to follow up with an ad that promotes the benefits of wool...without zombies, I trust.
Who's Making What with What?
The Woolmark ad comes at a fitting moment, as the Textile Exchange has just released its Materials Market Report for 2024. It's sobering.
The report tracks the volumes of global fiber and materials production year over year, not only in terms of how much is being produced but breaking it down by fiber type.
The bad news? Global fiber production continues to skyrocket, jumping by 7% just this past year alone. Virgin fossil-based synthetic fibers dominate, with less recycling than ever.
One encouraging trend is increased consumer demand for responsibly sourced and/or certified wool, mohair, cashmere, and cotton. But clearly, we have to keep working if we're going to keep those zombies at bay.
US Lawmakers Aim to Slow Fast Fashion
Convincing consumers to buy less plastic is a good start. But without powerful legislation, companies still have little incentive to make lasting changes.
I was thrilled to hear about the Slow Fashion Caucus that Congresswoman Chellie Pingree launched, alongside Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Sydney Kamlager-Dove.
With just 15% of clothing in the US currently recycled or reused, and the rest sent to landfill or incinerated, the representatives say they plan to use legislation to curb the harms of fast fashion while helping families and producers.
Congresswoman Pingree may be a politician, but she's also been a longtime friend of wool. Years ago, she raised sheep and ran a cottage knitting business here in Maine.
New Threads, Ancient Techniques
This next bit of news is for anyone who enjoys embellishing with colorful thread, whether needlepoint or embroidery, visible or invisible mending, or knitting, weaving, or crocheting in miniature. French thread company DMC has just added a new line of certified organic crewel wool embroidery thread called Eco Vita. It comes in more than 60 shades, all of which have been naturally dyed.
Rejoice in What Remains
It's easy to get caught up in the gloom of mill closure announcements this year, including Zeilinger Wool Company and Jagger Spun. But earlier this summer, the Steamboat Pilot & Today published a lovely profile of one mill that's still going strong: Yampa Valley Fiberworks.
John Camponeschi
The Cats in the Hats
Finally and quite possibly my favorite story of the year comes from Montreal, where researchers have found a way to conduct EEG brain scans on cats without having to sedate them. The secret is wool and a crochet hook.
Mack DeGeurin
It's hoped that these EEG brain scans will help researchers figure out how cats experiencing the chronic pain of osteoarthritis may respond when exposed to pleasant sounds and smells.
You can read the findings in the Journal of Neuroscience Methods.
And on that note, I'll let you go.
Thanks as always for your readership and your support!
Until next time,
Clara
