I heart sheep: Wool and Hazel
I met someone who has met my Sheep Idol standards (there are only two people so far) and her name is Hazel. I met her at the Harvest Fair at our local school (an environmental magnet school on 50 beautiful acres) where she had baskets of gorgeous skeins of wool in a palette to die for. I had my young bottle-fed Buttercup with me and she was very curious about the wool with no sheep attached. Hazel, sinewy, tan and of indeterminate age was communing quietly with my lamb clearly having several lifetimes of experience when it comes to sheep.
Buttercup checks out the fleece bag
Hazel lives on a 1,000 acre sheep ranch called Bodega Pastures near the tiny West Sonoma County town of Bodega. The property is also home to a preschool called Pastures where it is not uncommon to have a bummer lamb recovering by the fire while toddlers run and play along side. The ranch is managed in an organic and humane way so the meat they sell and the wool they gather is of the finest quality.
They say:
We practice natural, ecological, ethical, sustainable ranching. Our sheep live a good life on pasture, eating grass and drinking spring water that flows from high on our ridges.
Along with meat they offer a variety of wooly things such as raw fleece from several breeds, roving, batting, yarn in luscious natural colors and a wide variety of beautiful dyed colors, sheepskin rugs, comforters, quilts and pillows.
A little playful interaction at Bodega Pastures
Visit Bodega Pastures and other Bodega people and projects at www.bodeganet.com