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Innovative wool creations shine at Karoo Winter Wool Festival

25 June 2024 | Story Martinette Brits | Photo Carine van Zyl

OVK Innovation Competition Gala Event 2024 — The prize winners at the gala evening of the OVK Innovation Competition on 13 June 2024. From the left, in front: Emily Segame, Sophia Mekhoe, Sarah Lenong, Maserame Sebonyane, Ntabiseng Ndabeni. At the back: Elizabeth Mnwana, Carlize van Zyl (winner of the competition), Carien Vorster, Jana Vermaas, Doretha Jacobs, and Nelly Olayi.

The University of the Free State (UFS) Wool Wise Community Project was recognised for its innovative use of wool, receiving accolades at the OVK Innovation Competition held in conjunction with the Karoo Winter Wool Festival in Middelburg from 13–16 June 2024.According to Carien Vorster, project manager from the Department of Sustainable Food Systems and Development, participants were tasked with crafting practical items from wool. Their creativity shone through in their design of a lampshade, earning them second place. Doretha Jacobs, a lecturer in the Department of Sustainable Food Systems and Development, focused on making felt from Dorper fibre, noting that while Dorper sheep are primarily bred for meat, they sought to repurpose fibres that would otherwise be discarded.

The team achieved third place with their cushion, featuring a front made entirely of merino wool felt and a back crafted from upholstery fabric. “Each cushion contains a 100% duck feather inner, and their uniqueness lies in the hand-dyed wool and hand-placed designs on each felt piece,” explains Vorster.

Other notable entries from different teams included a duvet inner, shoe insoles, and oven gloves. The top prize went to a hand-felted coat.

Community project empowers local women in wool craft

The UFS Wool Wise Community Project originated as a spin-off from the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building (Ruforum) project, initiated in 2019 by the UFS Department for Sustainable Food Systems and Development.

According to Vorster, the Ruforum project encompasses various components such as research, farmer support, and community development, with a particular emphasis on community upliftment programmes. "Since 2019, we have conducted numerous wool workshops and training sessions where local women have participated to learn about wool processing," she explains.

"From these events, we identified women who are now integral to our programme. Their skills range from sewing, felt making, and hand embroidery, to knitting."

The project features eight women who create diverse products from scratch: Elizabeth Mnwana, Emily Segame, Georgina Collins, Maserame Sebonyane, Nelly Olayi, Sarah Lenong, Sophia Mekhoe, and Ntabiseng Ndabeni.

She emphasises that the project also manufactures conference bags for various events and stands as one of UFS's most successful community initiatives. "Ultimately, this project has the potential to become self-sustaining, with proceeds supporting the salaries of the eight women," Vorster concludes.

Competition boosts visibility and market reach

Participating in initiatives like the OVK Innovation Competition motivates them to stay current and benchmark their efforts against other businesses or individuals involved in felt product creation.

"Winning a competition can also significantly uplift team morale," remarks Vorster.

"Securing second and third place in this competition translates to increased visibility and marketing opportunities for us. This is crucial as we aim to expand our market reach and establish a sustainable income stream for the project," she concludes.

A worker packs the carded wool in layers preparing for the felting process.

The cushion (in front), secured the team third place at the OVK Innovation Competition.

The lampshade secured the team second place at the OVK Innovation Competition.

News Archive

Walking and running routes launched on UFS Bloemfontein Campus

2015-09-16

Photo: Hatsu Mphatsoe

On Casual Day, Friday 4 September 2015, the UFS Health and Wellness Centre and KovsieSport launched a healthy lifestyle on the Bloemfontein Campus with the focus on Walking and Running routes. The theme of the event was set by the many flying tutus, together with outrageous outfits that were to be seen in the crowd of anxious and excited runners.

There are a total of six walking and jogging routes, stretching over the central and western parts of the Bloemfontein Campus. Colour-coded arrows indicate the various routes, ranging from a three-kilometre route (green) to an eight-kilometre route (black). The 2,5 km route is accessible for people with wheelchairs.

According to Arina Engelbrecht, who is spearheading the Wellness programme, a board will be erected in front of the Callie Human Centre later on, explaining the various routes. All the routes start and finish at the Callie Human Centre.

This initiative is receiving support from management, who requested that a healthy lifestyle be encouraged amongst students and staff. With this project, staff and students can train and exercise in a safe environment. The routes are also wheelchair friendly, and will be expanded to cycle routes in the future.

Various departments showed their support in numbers, bringing together teams that competed. Staff and students were excited to see what bends and turns lay ahead of them on the trails. Prof Nicky Morgan: Vice-Rector: Operations, cut the ribbon at the official opening of the routes. Morgan himself was extremely excited about the event, as he navigated his way energetically between the runners and walkers.

In his opening speech, Pieter du Plessis, Executive Assistant to the Vice-Rector: Operations, talked about the importance of keeping healthy by doing something as simple as walking, an inexpensive method of keeping healthy.

Arina commented: “We received some great feedback from the masses that attended, and many said they will continue to make use of the routes.”

This event forms part of the human project of the UFS, and will also create awareness amongst staff and students about persons with disabilities.

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