WOOL | Jura sheep

During the FarmLab residency, I focused on knitting and working closely with Jura sheep, a breed living on the farm.

Their rich, dark wool-ranging from deep black to sun-touched brown at the tips—became the core inspiration for a project dedicated entirely to the color black.

The Jura fleece, soft and short, proved suitable for skin-contact applications and was tested for both wet and needle felting. While not ideal in large amounts, it performed well when blended in specific proportions, offering exciting potential for tactile, close-to-body textile work.

It was an honor to work alongside Lavini and Capucine, the founders of Nalba Studio, and to learn about wool processing directly from them. During our time together, we also had the opportunity to visit Wollgenuss – an association based in southeastern Styria and Weiz, where members handcraft fine products from sheep's wool. They also run a unique showroom: the first wool felt yurt in Styria, located in Edelsbach near Feldbach.