In this week’s edition of “Picking up the threads”, Hanli Fourie from Luminous Ware time travels to an era when was she swaddled in a fluffy mohair baby blanket her parents bought to celebrate her arrival. Today, that same blanket, no longer quite as fluffy, is used to warm her basset hound, Adam, who she says has a well-developed taste for natural fibres.
Have you ever seen the movie The red violin? It explores the back story of a mysterious violin at a prestigious auction house. From the hands of a humble violin maker a long, long time ago, we follow the violin as it brings melodies to an adventurous gypsy family and impacts the lives of many others.
Eventually it ends up in present day Montreal – awaiting the highest bid. It must be one of the most enthralling movies I’ve ever seen. And in essence, it is about heritage and love.
Now, the mohair blankie in question may not have the same prestige as the red violin, but its light pink and blue threads carry meaning for me, personally. You see, this blankie was hand-woven in Scotland by a weaver that no longer exists – I googled the name on its label to try and trace its origin.
The baby blanket then made its way to the diamond city of Kimberley in the seventies where my parents wrapped me in it to protect me from the harsh winter cold. When I outgrew the baby blankie, I started to wrap my favourite doll in it and would wish her sweet dreams.
Decades later, my mom cleared out her cupboards and handed me my blankie again – no longer quite as fluffy as it surely must have been at first, but still as light and warm as when I was an infant. You see, when my parents bought that baby blanket, they were celebrating the arrival of a long-awaited child.
They understood that mohair is durable and would last a lifetime. I’m sure it didn’t come cheap – nothing of value does. Right?
A love for wool and mohair blankets
This brings me to my basset hound, Adam, who came into our lives like a wrecking ball. An adoptee with loads of baggage, he fortunately turned into a complete cuddle bunny.
He has a nose like a sniffer dog and a well-developed taste for natural fibres, especially wool and mohair! This dog has destroyed more scatter cushions than I can count, leaving our sofas basically void of any noteworthy soft furnishings.
The exception seems to be handmade mohair or wool blankets – he has an inexplicable respect for these items.
I can’t remember what first inspired me to drape my old baby blankie over Adam, but it was love and snores at first touch.
To my amazement, this blankie never smells of dog – unlike all the other synthetic “dog blankets” we’ve given him in the past. Of course, now I know that mohair is anti-bacterial and resistant to soiling, so it makes sense.
I’ve only had to wash it once since last winter. I just freshen it up in the sunshine now and then.
Sometimes our old sausage dog, Liewe Lulu, will try her luck and crawl under the blankie first. However, the mohair blankie tempts Adam into his own bed (and off our bed) time and time again in winter, so he gets preference. Our other furry friend, Alfie, has enough wool of his own to keep warm, so no contest there.
Well, there you have it: the story of how a spicy basset hound with a taste for natural fibres ended up with an heirloom mohair blanket.
In case you were wondering, my mom seems fine with the fact that this blankie now belongs to Adam Basset. I guess she knows it’s better to let this sleeping dog lie.
- Hanli Fourie loves natural products almost as much as she loves Africa and its people. She dreams of seeing this continent flourish. Join her journey on Instagram at or on Facebook.
ALSO READ: ‘We need to create a market for wool locally’
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