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(Archive) 1000 wolredders // 1000 wool rescuers

By training a thousand new wool workers Pleed Foundation aims to make the craftsmanship of wool work future proof.

This project was part of DDW 2022

At DDW2022 we present our book '1000 wool rescuers’ and kick off our campaign to bring together experienced wool workers, farmers, designers and students. Visitors are welcome to join in and get a taste of a wide range of wool work crafts at our Section C workplace or view our work at De kazerne.

Craftsmanship

Spinning wheels will be buzzing, carders will be creating beautiful white fluff, felters will be rubbing foaming fibers, and yarns will be transformed into cloth by weavers and knitters.

Craftsmanship is not acquired from a book. To master a craft takes more than half an hour. You master it by doing it, and by practicing a lot. Your hands need to get the feel for it.

Crafts are alive as long as there are people to pass them on. So it is when working with wool. If you are not familiar with and do not know its potential, you'll probably leave it by the wayside.

A fleece just shorn feels sticky in your hands, it smells of sheep, it is full of bits of grass and undesirable matter.

But fleece that is scoured, washed, carded, spun, felted, woven or knitted is an altogether different thing. It has become a beautiful woollen fabric.

Wool community

Working with your hands is therapeutic. Being part of a community and working together is good for the soul. It fosters environmental sustainability which is our aim.

As we know at Pleed, there is a lot of interest in working with wool, yet at the same time there is also a lot of ignorance and lack of knowledge about it.

Rebuild the wool production chain for a sustainable future

Pleed wants to make sure the fleece of the sheep in the Netherlands is not thrown away or sent as a waste product to other countries, but instead is put to good new uses for example in house building insulation, and interior design.

By training new wool workers we will revitalise the beauty and value of wool and wool craft, and bring these to younger audiences.

By connecting farmers, wool workers and designers we aim to rebuild the wool production chain for a sustainable future.