A Wing and a Bear

02/06/2026

We’ve still got a couple of places in the mending knitwear class this Saturday from 2-5pm taught by Claire from Ragbag Mending. This will be a really fun and useful class in which we will learn the principles of regular and Swiss darning for both decorative and invisible mends. Participants are encouraged to bring along any knitted items needing repairs in order to work on them in the class! www.wingandabear.com

28/05/2026

We still have two spaces left in Saturday afternoon’s needle felting class, so if you’re free and you’d like to needle felt a Wensleydale sheep using real local Wensleydale locks, register via our website at www.wingandabear.com!

26/05/2026

I’m loving spinning with black Welsh wool at the moment—I love the dark brown colour and find it very easy to draft! I recently snagged a gorgeous black Welsh/hand dyed silk batt from Auspicious Stitch that reminds me of violet creams and I love the way it spun up. Samantha’s black Welsh/silk batts all seem good enough to eat to me—the pink one also reminds me of some other kind of chocolate creams, the yellow one of banana bread (although that might be because Samantha brought us in some homemade banana bread at the same time she brought those in) and the red reminds me of boiled sweets. Not sure what the blue one looks like although that one is popular with felters. We also stock plain black Welsh wool top which I also love. Next up I will be spinning a braid from Spinning Through Time, but how to choose just one? More info on our spinning fibres soon.

26/05/2026

I’m loving spinning with black Welsh wool at the moment—I love the dark brown colour and I love spinning it, I find it very easy to draft! Recently, I snagged a black Welsh/hand dyed silk batt from .stitch that reminded me of violet creams! I’m about halfway through spinning it and I love the look of the silk bits in the spun yarn. In fact, Samantha’s black Welsh/silk batts all look almost edible to me—the yellow one makes me think of banana bread (maybe because Samantha brought us some homemade banana bread the day she brought those in), the rose one of some sort of chocolate cream sweets and the red one of boiled sweets. Not sure about the blue one though…Anyway, these yummy batts are available in our shop as is plain black Welsh top. Next I plan to spin up a braid from (see last pic) but I know it’s going to be difficult to choose which one! More info to follow on our other spinning/felting fibres!

25/05/2026

Durham’s first Clean Air Fair is coming!

Air pollution is an issue that affects us all in Durham, with high levels of traffic impacting the health of ourselves, and our children.

That’s why Climate Action Durham is hosting the city’s first ever Clean Air Fair, to raise awareness and inspire action.

Drop in on 18 June, 4–6pm at Durham Town Hall for stalls, school posters, expert chats and simple actions you can take for cleaner air. Free entry + refreshments 💚
The facilitator of the stakeholder round table session, which will run parallel with the fair, will present a summary of Durham’s key stakeholder action plans to the fair attendees.

Let’s help Durham breathe easy.

20/05/2026

Thanks to April 11 for this post about the gorgeous felted fleeces from Amerston Flock that they have in their lovely shop and we have on our website!

19/05/2026

17/05/2026

14/05/2026

Needle felt a Wensleydale sheep using real local Wensleydale sheep locks from Amerston Flock ! Join Freya and Heather for this fun class on Saturday May 30 from 2-4pm in which you’ll learn the basics of needle felting and make an adorable woollen Wensleydale sheep to take home. All materials provided. For more information and to register, visit our website at www.wingandabear.com.

08/05/2026

We’ve just added to our selection of single-breed British wools with three selections from World of Wool ‘s new Origins collection! We are stocking Manx Loaghtan (soft and bouncy), Wensleydale (so silky!) and Zwartbles (I for one can’t resist a naturally dark brown wool!). This range is Aran weight, as is the brown Fleece Bluefaced Leicester roving from West Yorkshire Spinners . Thus we now stock the following single-breed British wool yarns in various weights and colours: Bluefaced Leicester, Shetland, Jacob, Portland, Wensleydale, Manx Loaghtan and Zwartbles!