Fiber Talk's latest interview is with the owner and manager of Appletons Wool, founded in 1835. You can hear about the transition from the ownership of the Appleton family, the challenge of replacing old machines, changing the labels from the old white to colorful maroon and grey, modernizing the running of the company, moving the company from London to outside Oxford, etc. Then you can hear how this entirely British wool fiber is purchased from a wool merchant in Yorkshire, turned into yarns and sold to stitchers, not to mention how the pandemic and their tight supply chain has driven their business, and why they can no longer moth-proof their wools. You'll learn which countries buy crewel wool and which buy tapestry wool. And more!
You can browse the company's website, look at their wool crewel and tapestry threads (which you can buy directly from Appletons now as of a month ago) and check out their tapestry kit lines, here.
Appleton crewel is my absolutely favorite wool thread so I loved hearing about the company and how it works.
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