u/-DiceGoblin-

TMI but I sweat a lot when sleeping sometimes. And then wake up freezing from being covered in sweat. It’s frustrating lol

Long story short, I think the properties of wool would be desirable for a full body blanket for myself.

Biggest stipulation is that it needs to be easily machine washable- so anything I crochet, I’ll have to account for it felting/shrinking.

Is there anything else I should keep in mind?

Idk, is it a terrible idea? I plan to blend in alpaca and/or angora mohair to soften things up a little bit. My partner has a 100% wool blanket, and it’s a bit scratchy, but honestly not *that* bad.

I would love some external input! I’ve been thinking about this too much lol

Except I AM allergic.

My skin breaks out in hives when exposed to cigarette smoke. Breathing in a tiny amount makes my lungs itchy in a really weird way that I can’t describe.

I smoke weed without ANY problems, but if I so much walk past someone who recently smoked a cigarette, I can start having a mild allergic reaction.

I’ve had multiple instances of having coughing fits for hours after a customer entered my workplace directly after smoking. (This was very fun to explain to my bosses during Covid 😑)

I’ve never gone into full blown anaphylaxis over it, but I also specifically try to avoid exposing myself as much as possible.

Disagreeing with someone over THEIR ALLERGY is fucking asinine. Like- I’m sorry, are you my doctor? 😂 are you my immune system? (If so, I’d like a word….)

I understand that they’re likely explaining MOST people who claim to be allergic to cigarettes simply dislike the odor, but I *PERSONALLY* AM ALLERGIC.

When I explained this to the person I got downvoted 🤦‍♂️ oh my god

CW: suicide.
I graduated in 2019, for a timeframe reference. This was in the 9th or 10th grade

At the time, I was just barely realizing I was queer and coming to terms with that fact.

I had had a school year from hell- socially isolated, extreme anxiety/depression, genuinely was *that* close to ending it all.

I actually had internet friends talk me off of the edge multiple times at that point in my life.

I tell you this to set the scene. The school year was almost over, and I was just trying to crawl across that finish line.

I sit down in seminary class one day, and the teacher announces the final assignment. If we didn’t do it, we would not pass the class (not that it really *matters* academically, but my parents would’ve had my hide if I failed)

We had to write an essay, the topic? “Why marriage should only be between a man and a woman”

I’m gonna be honest, I don’t really remember a lot from that time period of my life. I think it was just so traumatic that my brain blocks most of it out.

I do remember that I sat there, a queer, anxious child, perpetually teetering on the precipice of suicide… and I wrote the essay.

Because what else could I do? I felt powerless. I felt more alone than I had ever felt (which, lemme tell you, is fucking SAYING something after that school year.) I felt small, I felt scared.

Thankfully I’ve always had the ability to bullshit an essay without much emotional or cerebral involvement- so the actual writing of the essay itself was whatever.

What really upsets me is the fact that I effectively didn’t have a choice. Fucked up to make a child write such hateful garbage.

What’s even more fucked up is that while I was in HS, a queer man (recently returned missionary) took his life in the parking lot of that same building. It was *very* close to where I lived at the time.

I’m still haunted by it. I know his pain. That very well could have been me, too.

The oppressive culture that Mormonism creates culminates in that exact result. It is not an accident, it is systemic, and even seems to be the preferred outcome, if the doctrine is anything to go by.

Wanna know what my TBM parents said about it?

“God wouldn’t have let him do it if it wasn’t his time”

My partner got a wool blanket second hand. We decided to wash it in the tub, which worked well, but residual dye stained the ceramic pink.

After struggling with isopropyl alcohol (usually works for removing acid dye from surfaces) and a melamine foam sponge, I finally resorted to filling the tub with (scalding) hot water and dish soap and letting it soak.

Well that worked. Kind of baffled that soap and water of all things worked, but hey! Thought I’d share the info in case if anyone ends up in a similar position.

I’m teaching a yarn spinning class at my local library in the future. I want to make an interactive/educational display for anyone to look at.

I’m wanting to have samples of wool in various stages of production-

and this is where the potential issue comes in

**I’m thinking of having unscoured and scoured fleece next to each other and prompting people to smell (maybe touch?) to observe a difference between the two! I figure the more hands on, the better!**

Obviously any of the wool used for spinning will be thoroughly scoured to reduce the chances of anyone having a reaction.

I’ll also keep a bottle of dish soap on hand in case if anyone gets a skin reaction- since it’ll help wash the oil off.

I’ll have an obvious sign up on the display warning people about the potential allergen risk, but I’m not sure if I need to do anything else?

Any thoughts? I also have alpaca and goat mohair, maybe I could blend the two just in case if anyone with a severe wool/lanolin allergy comes in? (I’m planning to make a bunch of rolags, I think that should be relatively accessible for beginners)

Also idk if it matters, but I plan to send people home with a little spindle and a paper baggie of wool to keep practicing with. (Just figured I’d mention it since we’re discussing allergy risks) should I make a little paper to put in the sack to warn about allergens? Or is that overkill?

Thank you in advance for any thoughts! This is my first time teaching this sort of class, so I’m wanting to go into it as prepared as possible :)