Francesca Farris is the first artist in residency for setteuarciate. Her April residency focused on hide tanning felt like the perfect time to finally experiment with extracting lanolin from sheep’s wool.

Lanolin is a waxy oil that wool bearing animals secrete from their sebaceous glands. It is an emollient meaning it keeps the animal’s wool soft, skin moisturized and wool protected from the elements. Think rain jacket.

Lanolin is a fixative used in perfumes and a scent that is often cherished because it evokes memories of bucolic softness.

Many famous perfumes have lanolin or similar molecules dancing in their ether. The molecules responsible for that cozy, clean and waxy lanolin smell are aldehydes.

Lanolin and leather via hide tanning are where perfume enters into the realm of animal. Which is truthfully just back to its origin when you are not crafting perfumes through enfleurage. It is like reconstituting something deconcted.

To begin the exploration of lanolin and sheep’s wool in Abruzzo, Francesca and I went to visit Benedetta of Lamantera in Anversa degli Abruzzi. Benedetta started this amazing project with wool as the main focus.

She has a background in fashion design so it was incredible to hear her speak about leather sourcing for the brands she previously worked with. She no longer focuses on leather products, but has started her own business with a laser clear objective to recuperate wool and create beautiful knit pieces.