Soothe Your Little One with a Heirloom Baby Blanket from Ériu
When you become a mother, some objects become precious, important, things you can’t live without. Objects that help your baby, therefore help you. When Ériu founder Zoë Daly’s daughter was born 7 years ago her grandmother Kitsy, who has knitted all her life, gifted her a baby blanket that became indispensable. The 100% Wool blanket was warm when it was cold and cool when it was warm but for a reason unknown to Zoë, whenever her daughter cried wrapping her in this handcrafted gift soothed her, ceasing her tears, something not achieved by her other blankets.
There have been incredible advances in technology that have eased the burden on new mothers and improved the lives of new-borns but as Zoë discovered the properties in Natural Wool make it especially suitable for baby blankets. Temperature regulating, cellular, non-allergenic, stain, odour and flame resistant, wool creates long lasting items that can become heirlooms and comfort generations of infants.
Inspired by her grandmother’s gift and spurred on by a wish to share her experience with other mothers, Ériu was born. All of products from this new Irish company, including the Heirloom Baby Blankets (€144) are made using 100% Irish wool from farms around the Island and hand crafted in Dublin, slow and sustainably produced from source to sale.
Drawing of the innate knowledge and skills handed down from our ancestor’s, Ériu’s Heirloom Baby Blankets (€144) are a unique and powerful gift for mums-to-be and new mums alike, made to be passed down to the next generation.
The blankets are available online at www.eriu.eu and Mira Mira, Sandymount; Reuzi, Foxrock; Over the Moon, Monkstown and Granny’s Bottom Drawer, Kinsale.
Founded by Zoë Daly after 7 years of research, Ériu is a slow and sustainable Irish company from source to sale. Crafted in Dublin using 100% Irish Wool sourced from around the country and named after the patron goddess of Ireland, queen of fertility and abundance of the land, the company’s ‘Farm to Yarn’ process hopes to put a value back on Irish wool. Contributing to a better future for our planet, not just for us, but for our children and generations
Value of Wool:
Wool is a renewable natural resource – sheep thrive on Irish soil, each year sheep produce new fleeces making it a constantly renewable process
Wool is biodegradable – at the end of its useful life, wool can go back into the soil where it decomposes and releases valuable nutrients into the ground. It takes a very short time to decompose, unlike synthetics where are extremely slow and polluting to degrade.
Wool is breathable – because wool fibres are crimped, they form millions of tiny pockets of air, allowing it to absorb and release moisture, either from the atmosphere or the wearer, without compromising it’s thermal ability and making it extremely breathable and cellular for blankets.
Resilient and long-wearing – wool fibres resist tearing and are naturally elastic. So, they can move and stretch with wear and then return to their natural shape. As organic natural fibres, they “grow and live” with their wearer, improving with age. This is in contrast to most synthetics which rapidly decrease with age, contributing to our throw away culture.
Easy-Care – whilst caring for wool involves specific instructions, the waxy coating on wool makes it naturally stain and odour resistant, reducing the amount of cleaning needed. It is also anti-static, reducing the amount of dust collected by most materials.
Safe – wool is not known to cause allergies and is also anti-bacterial. It is also flame-retardant and carries a high level of UV protection.
Temperature Regulating – in this same way wool does this for sheep, as your body temperature rises, wool has the ability to transfer heat and moisture along every fibre and release it. In cooler temperatures, it keeps the heat in.
Carbon-Friendly – Sheep are part of the natural carbon cycle, consuming the organic carbon stored in plants and converting it to wool. Fifty per cent of the weight of wool is pure organic carbon.
(sources: International Wool Textile Organisation iwto.com Campaign for Wool, campaignforwool.com)
Find Ériu on Instagram @Eriu.Ireland
