Another Kind of Wool

Remember yesterday when I promised to show you the finished sweater today?  Well, I can't.  Not because it isn't finished, (it's FINISHED!) but because it's 95 degrees outside.  It's so humid that my lens fogged up when I went outside to take photos.

Instead I thought I'd show you the sheep skinned rug I picked up at the flea market last weekend.  When I found it hiding under a pile of kid sized sleeping bags,  I did one of those gasps people do in movies when they've discovered gold or treasure or something!  It seemed to be in great shape, except for a few surface stains and a musty smell from being in the flea market barn.  I took it home, laid it on the kitchen floor and looked at it for a while, trying to figure out how to get it clean.  I found lots of info on the web, but it was all so conflicting.  My biggest concerns were felting the wool and ruining the soft leather backing.  I went to Facebook, and as I'd hoped, lots of you were experienced in washing sheep skins.  Here's what I did, in case you're interested...

First, I filled up the tub with luke warm water and a few drops of soap.  I let the rug soak for 30 minutes.  The water was really dirty, so I drained the tub, rolled up the rug and gave it a good stomping to squeeze the water out.  I filled up the tub again and let it soak again.  The rug is about 4 feet x 6 feet and really heavy when wet, making it hard to move around.  I decided that the best way to get it rinsed properly was to put it in the washing machine.  I ended up spinning and rinsing a few times in the washer and then hung it out on the line for a few days.  


I guess it was a success, because I found Luke sleeping on it when I woke up this morning!  Not bad, for a $5 flea market find. 

Sweater photos?  Maybe tomorrow. 

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