We are often asked why our 1-ply pure new wool is so expensive and why don’t we have large balls of Merino wool as other miniature knitting sites offer, the answer is simple mothproofing!
All our wool is mothproofed by the manufacturers (and as an added bonus, as it is designed for tapestry it is exceptionally strong). Remember moths don’t eat man made fibres, so acrylics and other such yarns are ideal for use in a dolls house, but beware they do not always behave like wool when knitted into garments.
If you are going to place an article you have knitted in a dolls house, it will become available food for moth larvae, unless it has been mothproofed. Frances learned the hard way when she first started knitting in miniature, she purchased some pure wool and then spent ages knitting several items which were placed in the dolls house, a few months later she noticed small holes had appeared in every item. After the initial despair and upset the hunt was on to find a suitable mothproofed pure wool 1-ply yarn – moths were not going to feast on things in Frances’ dolls house again!
Moths will attack other natural fibres, but wool is definitely their favourite meal. Sometimes the old herbal solutions are still the best and Granny’s solution of lavender bags will still discourage moths in the dolls house. So to keep moths from your dolls house why not place a few small lavender flowers or dried rosemary leaves near the knitted items, if the item is a cushion, stuff it with lavender flowers. After all lavender has been successfully used for many years as a moth deterrent and smells good too. More herb lore and tips can be found on this page
Just remember if you have spent ages knitting a woollen bedspread for example, the last thing you want to find are moth holes. OK, so our wool may be that bit more expensive, but now you know why we sell it and not the cheaper variety!
DO REMEMBER that if you wash the article after you have made it you may wash out the mothproofing in the wool!