The ‘Sandringham Wool Collection’ of deluxe handcrafted mattresses is set to bring new relevance to hyperlocal sourcing using fully traceable wool in its bedding and mattresses from Aberfield sheep that graze on the Royal Estate.
Pre-industrial revolution, hyper-local sourcing was the only way for consumers and cottage industries to source their goods and raw materials- for director Amanda Oldfield when establishing Wrought Iron and Brass Bed Co. nearly twenty years ago- this was a key aspiration for the business.
Handmade to order in their workshop, all Wrought Iron and Brass Bed Co. bed frames are sculpted by hand from 100% British iron sourced from steel merchants within a 50-mile radius.
“When we founded Wrought Iron, my philosophy was- look after your local business economy, and it will look after you”, Amanda adds. But hyperlocal sourcing also makes good business practice “being close to our suppliers and having them source the raw materials from within the British Isles, and we can hold a key focus on quality and ensure the miles travelled are kept to a minimum.” Oldfield’s philosophy of hyperlocal sourcing exceeds all expectations in this new collaboration using wool from the flock on The Sandringham Estate.
Although there’s no defined industry standard for the classification of ‘hyper-local’ sourcing, less than 100 meters from your front door certainly lives up to the expectations of this term.
“For many years, I have been puzzled by mattress manufacturers looking overseas to source their wool when this country has an abundance of fleece. In the past, I’ve asked about wool being traceable back to the farm, and I have often been told- we don’t have the facility for that in this country!” Amanda adds, “Rubbish, I thought. Walking to work one day and surrounded by the organic pastures in North Norfolk, I thought to myself – surely there’s a way.”
Working closely with The Sandringham Estate, the Wrought Iron and Brass Bed Co. have developed a limited collection of wool mattresses that are traceable back to the farms at Sandringham and, more so- traceable back to the individual bale of wool.
“Authenticity and transparency are essential to our family company. The new collection, named ‘The Sandringham Wool Collection’, will use only fleece from the Estate within these mattresses,” adds Amanda. “This means once we have used the full yield, there will be a natural wait until next year’s yield before we start production adding to the collection again.”
The benefits of using wool as a natural fibre for clothing and upholstery have been known for decades- a natural fibre that once formed the backbone of the British Isles dating back to the Elizabethan era. Naturally hypoallergenic and heat regulating, each mattress is handcrafted using traditional techniques that date back to the origins of the first pocket spring mattress. The new Wrought Iron and Brass Bed Co. collection is upholstered with 100% Aberfield Wool from the Estate and other sustainable, organic and natural fibres with a 30-year guarantee.
