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Woolly Wonderfuls, 100% Merino Wool Dryer Balls
Merinos Grazing
Merinos Grazing
Merinos Grazing
It all starts with the Merino Sheep. Cared for in the most loving and greenest of ways here in Michigan.
Shorning
Merinos Grazing
Merinos Grazing
Shorning or shearing the sheep are done by hand with no stress or harm to the animal.
Three Bags Full
Merinos Grazing
Three Bags Full
Ready to be washed. We wash our wool using organic soap, boiling hot water and a lot of elbow grease.
Carding Machine
Carding Machine
Three Bags Full
Carding, which really is like combing, the wool. We do not spray our wool with synthetic oils like most mills do during this process.
Rolled Roving
Carding Machine
Rolled Roving
We strategically roll a 36 foot long ribbon of wool, called roving, into a ball to form each dryer ball. No flux centers here!
Wonderful
Carding Machine
Rolled Roving
Our balls are so large we do have to use a special felting/shrinking procedure for the last few steps of making our wool dryer balls.
Important! Not All Wool Dryer Balls Are The Same!
Please be aware there is a difference in wool capabilities and strengths based on scientific fact. We, unfortunately, cannot advise on others, especially imported ones that, most likely are made with substandard wool, a non-wool center filler, and an unknown (all-important) finishing process.
Quick Overview
Unlike toxic dryer sheets and fabric softener our much-larger-than-normal Merino wool dryer balls:
- Cut drying time on average by 50%, saving money and time.
- Naturally, soften and fluff fabrics.
- Eliminate static via the wool fibers structure.
- Reduce wrinkles by the wool continually moving moisture through the core of its fiber.
- Remove pocket tissues, lint, and pet hair, which all go onto the lint screen, not the balls.
- After 3-6 months of continual use, will change the Electromagnetic polarity of your fabrics, so the fabric will repel pet hair as you hug up your fur babies. No more lint rollers! This does not harm fabrics or dryers, it happens because of the type of wool we use and the size of our Wolly Wonderfuls balls.
- Woolly Wonderfuls will last 20-plus years with annual hot water wash, paying for themselves within months of their initial use.
- On average, according to Michigan's main Energy Company, Woolly Wonderfuls will save $.83 cents per dryer load.
- Allow you to add your favorite aromas to fabrics by putting essential oils on the dryer balls.
- Hand-made out of 100% Merino wool sourced from storybook-like farms in Michigan that take pride in a low carbon footprint and humanely caring for their sheep.
- Are 36 feet of solid Merino wool roving per dryer ball with no other filler material or object in their core, like most other wool dryer balls now have. i.e. filler cores other wool dryer ball brands are known to use: Junk wool, Styrofoam balls, plastic balls, even tennis balls, chunks of metal, and plastic trash.
Woolly Wonderfuls stay dry during the drying process by moving air through little vents in the wool fiber. This process is referred to as the wool “breathing”.
Based on this science, the more wool dryer balls you have in your dryer, the greater the drying time cut is. Woolly Wonderfuls are so large 3 are usually sufficient enough to cut your laundry drying time up to 50% small to midsize loads.
About Our Balls: Woolly Wonderfuls
Yes, we have big balls. And, size does matter. So does the wool used to make wool dryer balls.
The magic of any wool dryer balls is the wool’s capability to wick moisture. Each type of wool has different levels of wicking capabilities. Alpaca is known to have no wicking capability, while Merino is known to have the highest wicking capability. All other types of fleece and wool fall in the range between the two. We use 100% Merino wool from right here in Michigan.
The structure of a Merino wool fiber is unique. Each fiber can absorb and release up to 30% of its own weight in moisture while still feeling dry to the touch. This, is referred to as the wool “breathing”; each fiber is hollow with side vents that draw in moisture from your wet fabrics. Then air passes through, releasing the moisture quickly, cutting your drying time.
The larger the dryer ball, the more vents; the more vents, the more of a drying time cut. Our finished 4” in diameter, 36’ of solid Michigan Merino wool roving used for each ball will give you up to a 50% drying time cut on average, whereas others, at best, only 25%.
Woolly Wonderfuls will also give you naturally soft, fluffy, wrinkle- and static-free clothes without using chemical-laden dryer sheets or fabric softener.
Not only do they remove any pet hair from your fabrics, but your fabrics will start to repel pet hair after 3-6 months of continual use. Our Woolly Wonderfuls changing the electromagnetic polarity of your fabrics because of the type of wool they are made of and their size. This does not harm fabrics or dryers but does allow you to hug up your fur babies without looking like one. They remove Kleenex left in your pockets and lint, which goes onto the lint catcher and does not stick to the balls.
Merino wool is also the softest known wool. Its softness and high-wicking capability make it the wool of choice for wool socks, nautical, athletic, outdoor wear, hunting gear and issued Military wear.
Do note the more Woolly Wonderfuls you have in your dryer, the more your drying time will be reduced.
Say No To Toxic Dryer Sheets And Fabric Softener
Plain and simple, dryer sheets, and fabric softeners, cause hormone imbalance, neurotoxicity, respiratory problems, and even cancer!
They also pollute the environment inside your house AND out.
A FEW REASONS TO DITCH YOUR DRYER SHEETS AND FABRIC SOFTENER:
In addition to all the chemicals that end up on your skin, when heated, the fumes are also toxic. These toxins go straight to your brain’s most sensitive neurological centers and wreak havoc.
1. Artificial Fragrances–When you use dryer sheets, you are coating your fabrics with artificial chemical perfumes. These fragrances are known carcinogens that cause liver damage and cancer in mammals. A recent international study showed vapors emitted from dryer vents to have extremely high concentrations of acetaldehyde, acetone, and ethanol (two of which are considered carcinogenic).
2. Alpha-Terpineol–This chemical has been linked to disorders of the brain and nervous system, loss of muscle control, depression, and headaches.
3. Benzyl acetate–Benzyl acetate has been linked to cancer of the pancreas.
4. Benzyl alcohol–This upper respiratory tract irritant can cause central nervous system (CNS) disorders, headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and dramatic drops in blood pressure.
5. Chloroform–Neurotoxic, anesthetic, and carcinogenic. All three are very toxic to human brains. Inhaling its vapors may cause loss of consciousness, nausea, headache, vomiting, and/or dizziness, drowsiness.
6. Ethanol– Another fabric softener ingredient that is on the EPA’s Hazardous Waste list and linked to CNS disorders.
7. Ethyl Acetate–causes headaches and is on the EPA Hazardous Waste list.
8. Linalool–in studies, this chemical caused loss of muscle coordination, nervous system and brain disorders, and depression.
9. Pentane–causes headaches, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, drowsiness, and depression.
What’s the alternative to toxic dryer sheets?
Our 100% Merino Wool balls, Woolly Wonderfuls!
Chickapea Farms for Natural Home Products
The wilderness of northern Michigan and the nightly blanket of the Milky Way continue to inspire our dedication to creating honest, handcrafted products. With each product, we embrace time-honored artisan traditions, use sustainable, locally sourced materials, and design with eco-friendly practices that honor each product's full lifecycle.
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