I'm Alyson. Born and bred in Durham, with a pair of knitting needles in one hand and a paintbrush in the other.
It was only natural that I would go to art college to study fashion design and textiles.
After qualifying way back in 1986, I spent many years working for manufacturing and retail companies, before taking the plunge to follow my passion for colour and texture in wool.
The Business
Established in 2014 and originally based in the heart of Durham City, the Woolly Workshop began as a bricks and mortar wool shop. I sold an array of yarns, fleece and fibres, as well as running workshops in fibrecrafts and weekly knitting/crochet groups. Sadly, the decision to close the doors came in 2017.
This gave me plenty of time to reassess and explore the many facets of woolcrafting, concentrating on selling at small fairs and festivals only. Being an avid yarn spinner and a long-time member of my local Guild of Spinners, Weavers and Dyers, I have gleaned a vast amount of skills and knowledge of sheep and their wonderful fibrous coats.
Learning about the different breeds, their characteristics and what their fleece is best suited for has opened a new pathway for the Woolly Workshop to move forward. With the help and support of A Wing and a Bear in Fowlers Yard (the same street as my old shop), it's as if I’ve never been away, and my business can now rise from the ashes.
The Fleeces
The aim of The Woolly Workshop is to provide good quality, clean, British fleeces for various crafts.
Sourcing directly from farms and smallholdings, I select the best fleeces from the flock. Everything is inspected before buying-in, then named and dated for traceability.
All fleeces are skirted, picked, scoured by hand, and left to dry naturally. This ensures you will get a beautiful product at a good price.
