The Wool Studio

The sheep on our smallholding are the centrepiece!

Our flock is made up of a mixture of a small, hardy breed of Welsh mountain sheep known as Balwen, Katmoget Shetland sheep and hybrids of the two. The Balwens are born with dark black fleeces which change over age into a rich chocolatey brown before becoming deep grey or black when they become old timers. The Shetlands have a dense, soft, grey or fawn coloured fleece highly prized for its rich quality.

To keep them cool over the summer the flock is shorn each year in May or June.

We know each of our sheep individually, and they all have names. In order to showcase the beauty and the varied colours and textures of their wool, each fleece is washed separately by hand, and once dried, Holly weaves each one using a traditional, simple wooden peg loom. Each weave is accompanied by a postcard of its originator!