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This video changed my way of thinking....
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I have been listening to Mumford and sons between Trampled by Turtles...

I went to A TT show in December that completely blew my mind. Folk music is beautiful.....Mumford and Sons also stirs that inward emotion. Thank you Sons for providing perfect sewing music for today!
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I wanted to start by saying how much I have appreciated your understanding for the holes in my inventory on-line this month, due to the overwhelming (and exciting!!!) experience of buying our new farmhouse. It has been a very tough month and making the time for The wOOly Owl has been extremely difficult indeed. I have, however, been planning and dreaming about the opportunities and possibilities of my new sewing room and how I will have stations for this and an area for that so as to make the Owl more organized and efficient....I am adamant that there has to be a tone of a Lady's Parlour such as Lizy's in Pride and Prejudice....Oh how a woman can wish...:)

I have appreciated my little holiday (I have only sewed a few items here and there since December 21st) which has given me time to think and mull over a few items concerning NEW Organic material.

I have written and stood by the fact that The wOOly Owl: "sews exclusively with lovely certified organic cotton knits," and have believed that this was the best way to go about my sewing and my impact on the environment. After much consideration, I am announcing that I will no longer purchase organic cotton or ANY new materials to be used in the creating of my wOOly items. 

SHOCKED?

 I was at first when I realized that I was falling INTO THE TRAP OF THE GREEN MACHINE, I was trying to do what I assumed was the best course of action, while still swayed by consumer interest and popular beliefs of green living. Organic, organic, organic.....

I have realized now that buying new organic materials is, in its own way, a disservice to the environment as in doing so I have been :

  1. Purchasing material that is not available locally/within 100 KM of my shop
  2. purchasing materials that were not MADE IN CANADA by Canadians (outsourcing)
  3. am adding to my carbon footprint in the shipping of the material from The USA to Canada
  4. and I am not walking my talk as fully as I could be!


By #4 I mean that I have decided that, instead of purchasing NEW organic Materials, I have opted to purchase only 100% EXISTING MATERIALS FROM LOCAL SECOND-HAND STORES WITHIN MY COMMUNITY TO RECREATE AND UPCYCLE SUCH EXISTING MATERIALS INTO NEW AND BEAUTIFUL THINGS.
 I am excited for this change. 

With the changing economy, I need to protect my values and know that I am able to source the necessaries materials for The wOOly Owl at all times regardless of an economic or technological collapse. I would rather be prepared and comfortable that my community can provide the tools needed, than to rely on an ever-changing market and industry.

I sincerely hope that you see my vision and understand the reasons for this change. I would love your feedback on this matter!

To all of you, Have the best day of your life today, Make an effort to do something better for yourself NOW, and start walking your talk!
For now, 


The wOOly Owl
Alissa

PS, check out my online review which should be posted within the next few days!!  http://mysillymonkeys.com/2011/03/a-blogtastic-extravaganza-2-0/ 
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My husband John and I are the new owners of this beautiful little home in the woods. Beginning April 1, 2012, this will be the new studio for the everything wOOly! 

More to follow....
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A few months ago I was contacted by Gretchen at That Mama Gretchen Blog who was interested in spotlighting wOOl as an alternative for cloth diapering.
Not only did she have two mommas who use wool on their little owlette's voice their opinions of why they love wool, she also featured other shops that create various wool diapering alternatives...I especially loved the feature on wool laundry balls!

Want to learn more about cloth diapering with wool? Join @ThatMamaG for Wool Week who just so happens to have a feature of The wOOly OWL!
Leave a comment below the feature for a chance to win a wOOly sOaker wrap and a wOOly Care Kit!!!
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Lanolin is the natural waterproofing on sheep's wool. 
This natural lanolin is what makes the wool "waterproof".
 Wool absorbs about 30% of it's weight without feeling wet, which means "overspill" gets absorbed by the wool and, ta da!
 No leaks.
 Just let the wool air dry between uses, and you can go for weeks between washings. 
Wool doesn't get smelly like synthetics do. 
The lanolin on the wool cover gets used up by the urine as the cover air dries, so after a while you will need to restore lanolin to the cover to maintain the cover's effectiveness. 
The process of applying the lanolin back onto the wool is call Lanolizing.


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To wash a wool cover without lanolizing, follow the same instructions but omit the lanolin.


  1. If there is poop on the cover, use some olive oil bar soap (Kiss My Face makes some) and gently wash it out prior to lanolizing. If you don't have olive oil bar soap, Ivory bar soap will work fine. Do not use Woolite or other commercial wool detergents on diaper covers. (Try to use only unscented natural or organic soaps to ensure the most natural washing for your covers.)
  2. Melt 1/4 inch of Lansinoh Lanolin in hot water. Add 1/2 cap-ful of Eucalan Woolwash to the hot water. Mix to break up and mix in the Lanolin. Fill sink. The water should be room temperature. Not ice cold, and not too hot. 
  3. Place wool cover in sink and gently push cover under the water. 
  4. Let it soak for about 15 minutes, flip over and turn inside out (if wOOly soaker) to ensure all surfaces are coated with lanolin.
  5. After soaking, gently squeeze excess water out, then roll it between two towels to get even more moisture out. 
  6. Let it dry COMPLETELY for about 24 hours.
 For the first time lanolizer, you can order your very own  WOOly Lanolizer Kit- for only $4.00 with your next purchase of wooly sOaker, wrap, and long Legs! (kit comes with full wool care instructions as well as a home-made recipes for making your own wool wash!)


Visit http://www.etsy.com/listing/74453202/wooly-lanolizer-kit-lanolin-and for more info!
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Ten reasons you should make the switch to reusable....10 Benefits To Using Cloth DiapersWOOly Soaker
Ten reasons you should make the switch to reusable....


  1. Your family will save almost $2500+ per child vs using disposables. The average family spends $2,694.54 for 7,349 disposable, single-use diapers. *1
  2. Your family will NOT produce 1 ton of waste that would go into landfills. It is estimated that 10,000 tons of disposable diapers are added to landfills EVERY day. *2
  3. Your baby will have less diaper rash. wOOly especially is a breathable fibre and is 100% natural!
  4. Your baby won't be exposed to sodium polyacralate (the shiny crystals in the diaper that can stick to babies skin causing skin reactions) *3
  5. Your family doesn't have to put 1-2 bags of disposable diaper trash out on the curb for trash day.
  6. Using cloth diapers vs using disposable diapers will reduce your babies chances of getting asthma. The Archives of Environmental Health tested 6 leading cloth diapers and 6 leading disposable diapers and discovered that the emissions from one disposable diaper were high enough to produce asthma-like symptoms in mice.*4
  7. Your family is reducing their carbon footprint by using cloth diapers. The manufacturing of disposables takes over 1 million metric tons of wood pulp and 75,000+ of metric tons of plastic each year. *5
  8. Using cloth diapers will help facilitate quicker potty training. During potty training time children who have been in cloth will recognize sooner when they are wet vs a baby in disposable diapers.
  9. Cloth Diapers are just as easy to use as disposables. 
  10. No more trips to the store late at night when you are out of disposables. Just pop a load into the machine and you have instant diapers. Just think of the gas savings! NO more trips to the store!

   

 The wooly owl information by:
- By Kelly at http://www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com/2009/04/10-benefits-to-using-cloth-diapers.html
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