Glastonbury in Somerset, the 'Sheepskin' County of England

Glastonbury in Somerset, the 'Sheepskin' County of England

www.sheepskin.co.uk

Sheepland is a family run business creating the most beautiful sheepskin products in our farmyard workshop near Glastonbury, in the English county of Somerset. We make our slippers from natural sheepskin and they are crafted by hand.

The pace here is slow, the people friendly and often set in their ways. The traditional industries of sheep farming and basket weaving from willow, growing in the Somerset levels remain much as they were, reduced but surviving.

We wanted to be a part of this place, coming from the turmoil of the city to the peace and tranquillity of our hillside. The cottage where the business is located is nearly 200 years old. Sheepland Crafts moved here from Glastonbury around 1989. The workshop is surrounded by fields, the cows and sheep grazing, supply the background hum of activity. We have become garden lovers, creating from our field traditional borders, alive with bees and butterflies. Wildlife ponds, buzz with dragonflies, and ripple with frogs, diving beetles, and newts.

The business makes hand-made sheepskin products. Ladies with skilled fingers cut and sew the fleece, to make soft slippers, our wonderful rocking sheep, rugs, some of our cushions, and the Teddy Bears. Other items are supplied either locally, or from distributers. We try to source locally, but this is not always possible due to pressures of supply and demand.

Sheepskin Bears, made by hand

It was important to us that the business continued to employ these craftspeople otherwise, like so many other traditional skills, their expertise would possibly be lost forever.

Contact us:

Sheeplandcrafts@btinternet.com

Tel/Fax 44(0)1458 850991

Links:

Home Page

Somerset Designs some wonderful gifts

Click above for some beautiful hand made gifts for all the family

http://www.danutadesigns.com/index.php

http://www.isleofavalon.co.uk/

http://www.gcircle.co.uk/

http://www.somersetgateway.com/

http://www.southsomerset.gov.uk/towns/montacute.htm

http://www.mendip.gov.uk/Mendip/tourism.nsf/pages/glastonbury.html

Sheepskin Baby Rugs Sheepskin Slippers My Pet Sheep

Sheepskin Baby Rugs

www.sheepskin-slippers.co.uk

www.sheepskin-rugs.co.uk

Our Story
Sometimes you have dream, sometimes you try to make it happen, sometimes you forget all about it. We had a dream, not of grandeur and riches but of limestone walls and leaded windows. A sense of history with misty mornings shrouding an ancient land.

Somerset is King Arthur country. Glastonbury Tor and the Isle of Avalon are across the Mendip Hills to the north. The Tor is visible when the winter strips the trees. According to legend, King Arthur's gallant knights roamed the land, with honour and bravery as their watchword. Sir Lancelot and Guinevere, Merlin and the young King galloped over these hills. The stone cottages nestle calmly, watching the progress of the years, the lights from windows glowing over a land of enchantment. Somerset has a true mystery, a special feeling, inexplicable to those who have not experienced the almost magical beauty of the environment. This is reflected in the numbers of alternative therapists, artists, and writers who choose to reside in the area. The visitors flock to Glastonbury, especially in the Summer months, to witness and enjoy the history and ethos of the area.

Wells Cathedral is nearby, an ancient historical site built around a series of 'Wells', these are deep pools of blue black water, used to serve the people who flocked to the ancient town. The oldest intact street in Europe nestles behind the cathedral, a monument to the building skills of the day.

View from our workshop in winter