In Sheep's Clothing - a Book Review by Tina Rice

In Sheep’s Clothing by Pegg Thomas

(part of A Bouquet of Brides Collection)

1702, Milford, Connecticut...

Yarrow Fenn (I find the name “Yarrow” very interesting) is a weaver of wool and makes unique cloth with her own designs. As she waits in line at the fulling mill she hears rumors of a new journeyman fuller … a young handsome journeyman. Well, she is not there for a handsome young man, she wants her wool-cloth to be prepared as quickly as possible so she can sew garments for her family. 

Yarrow has a secret that she holds close that could very well put her in danger … as well as being "illegal.” Illegal, really?  The “illegal” part was a surprise to me, I had not heard of that until I read this novella. Besides, she ponders, what if this Peter guy is not really who he says he is but someone in disguise? She must be on her guard, especially with her heart. Can Yarrow learn to trust God in guiding her in all areas of her life or will she continue to second guess even His plans for her?

The new journeyman, Peter Maltby, has a goal ... becoming a Master Fuller as quickly as possible while he is in Milford. Then he has other plans that do not include Milford, but rather a “settling of scores”... of a sort, from his painful past. He soon finds that among the wool-cloth coming into the fulling mill, he is most impressed with the quality of wool-cloth Yarrow brings in. However, he did not plan on being impressed with Yarrow herself.  No, getting involved with any young lady would only complicate things ... yet, there is something special about Yarrow that drawls Peter to her. Will he continue down a path allowing his bitterness of past hurts to overshadow anything good that may come from knowing Yarrow? Or will he be forever blinded by his past to see God’s blessings and love?

This is my favorite story in this collection. I learned a lot of interesting information regarding caring for sheep, shearing them, carding the wool, spinning the yarn, weaving and making your own cloth, and then having to make your own clothes with that cloth. I enjoyed the descriptions of the colonial woolen fulling mill and what was involved in fulling wool. What really took me by surprise was learning of the laws limiting trade of that wool/cloth. I did not know that. I like the author's notes at the end of this story regarding some of the historical elements of the era Pegg Thomas wrote about.

This is one reason I love reading Christian historical fiction, not only are the stories fiction and entertaining but there are bits of our history woven within that fiction ... an enjoyable “history lesson”.  :-) I really enjoyed Yarrow and Peter’s story. It is a fun story filled with humor, love, hardships, learning to trust and faith, and a tense few moments with that bear - not telling any more! - a heartwarming story.

Pegg Thomas lives on a hobby farm in Northern Michigan with Michael, her husband of *mumble* years. A life-long history geek, she writes “History with a Touch of Humor.” When not working or writing, Pegg can be found in her barn, her garden, her kitchen, or sitting at her spinning wheel creating yarn to turn into her signature wool shawls.

Follow me on Facebook or visit my webpage at PeggThomas.com.

Meet the Colonial Journeyman

The colonial system of apprenticeships worked to train young men - and occasionally young women - in a trade. It was a good system to produce workers needed in the community. But what happened to the apprentice upon completion of their contract?

Most apprentices became a journeyman in their craft. The name comes from the French for "day man." They no longer had a master who provided bed and board in exchange for their education into the craft. Now they hired on to work for wages and lived on their own or moved back in with their family. These journeymen were the up and coming masters of the future.

First, they needed to earn the endorsement of a master in the craft. The journeyman labored to produce the best product of their craft that they could. They submitted this to the master who then submitted it to the craft guild. The guild masters would evaluate the piece and render it master-worthy - or not. If it was, the journeyman was accepted into the guild and given the title of master craftsman.

In my latest release, In Sheep's Clothing, part of A Bouquet of Brides collection, my hero is a journeyman fuller who wants more than anything to attain the level of master fuller. At least, that was his heart's desire until he met a certain local maiden with hazel eyes and an orphan lamb.

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Fulling Mills

Fulling Mill

In the beginning of the American Colonies, all cloth was imported from England. England already had a thriving textile industry by the mid-1600s. Some estimates are that 65% of the English economy was derived from its textiles. 

Although the importation of sheep was prohibited - to protect England's textile monopoly - resourceful colonists smuggled them. The hard-working Puritans were producing their own cloth almost as soon as they arrived.

Spinning and weaving is only part of the process of making cloth. Another important step in the process is called "fulling." Cloth straight off the loom is loose and sloppy. The fulling process washed out all the dirt and lanolin, then beat the fabric with wooden mallets (powered by a water wheel) until it shrunk and tightened into a usable bolt of cloth.

Wooden Mallets inside the Fulling Mill

After the cloth was pounded, it was brushed with a teasel head. Teasels are a dried flower head with hook-tipped spines that when brushed across wool fabric, will raise the nap of the fabric. The nap was then cut off with long, narrow shears. Next, the cloth was stretched over a long frame to dry.

Before fulling mills, this process was done by hand, or rather by feet. Stomping on the wet, soapy cloth took hours of labor to produce what the fulling mill could do in half the time with better results.

By the time King William III issued the Wool Act in 1699, our colonial ancestors were already providing cloth for themselves and were exporting the excess to other colonies and ports.



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