About Us
About Sheepland – The Sheepskin Workshop in Somerset
Established in 1986
Sheepland make Sheepskin Slippers, Sheepskin Hats, Sheepskin Rugs and much more. We are a small family-run business creating the most beautiful sheepskin products in our farmyard workshop near Glastonbury, in the English county of Somerset. We make our traditional range slippers from natural sheepskin and they are all crafted by hand. We are very passionate about what we do and hope you can see why!
Some of our most popular products are our fabulous Sheepskin Boots, Sheepskin Mittens, Sheepskin Luxury insoles, Sheepskin Clothing and of course our handmade Traditional Range Sheepskin Slippers. We also supplied Sheepskin Rugs to Channel 5 Cowboy Builders Program, some time ago, much to the delight of the recipients!
Katrina, (pictured right – our stitching lady for over 20 years!) with her skilled fingers, cuts and sews the fleece to make soft slippers, our wonderful rocking sheep, rugs, many of our cushions and the teddy bears. We also carefully source a range of top quality sheepskin products from other local craftspeople where possible. To watch her making your slippers, click here to take a look at our video.
It was important to us that the Sheepland continued to employ such craftspeople otherwise, like so many other traditional skills, their expertise would possibly be lost forever.
Our Story
Sometimes you have dream. Sometimes you try to make it happen, sometimes you forget all about it. We had a dream, not of grandeur and riches, but of limestone walls and leaded windows. The pace here is slow, the people friendly and often set in their ways. The traditional industries of sheep farming and basket weaving from willow, growing in the Somerset levels remain much as they were, reduced but surviving. We wanted to be a part of the quiet place, coming from the turmoil of the city to the peace and tranquillity of our hillside. The cottage where the business is located is over 200 years old. Sheepland Crafts moved here from Glastonbury around 1989. The workshop is surrounded by fields, the cows and sheep grazing, supply the background hum of activity. We have become garden lovers, creating from our field an array of traditional borders, alive with bees and butterflies. Wildlife ponds, buzz with dragonflies, and ripple with frogs, diving beetles and newts.
Somerset is King Arthur country. Glastonbury Tor and the Isle of Avalon are across the Mendip Hills to the north. The Tor is visible when the winter strips the trees. According to legend, King Arthur’s gallant knights roamed the land, with honour and bravery as their watchword. Sir Lancelot and Guinevere, Merlin and the young King galloped over these hills. The first tannery opened in this area, Morlands, famous for many years for the sheepskin it produced. The stone cottages nestle calmly, watching the progress of the years, the lights from windows glowing over a land of enchantment. Somerset has a true mystery, a special feeling, inexplicable to those who have not experienced the almost magical beauty of the environment. This is reflected in the numbers of alternative therapists, artists, and writers who choose to reside in the area. The visitors flock to Glastonbury, especially in the Summer months, to witness and enjoy the history and ethos of the area.
Wells Cathedral is nearby, an ancient historical site built around a series of ‘Wells’, these are deep pools of blue black water, used to serve the people who flocked to the ancient town. The oldest intact street in Europe nestles behind the cathedral, a monument to the building skills of the day.