How to Extract Lanolin from Sheep's Wool

Last Updated: September 16, 2021 Approved

Sheep's wool contains lanolin as a form of protection against nature and insects. Human use of lanolin is as old as the use of wool. Extracting it is easy to do at home and is a great way to get lanolin that is pure, free of industrial chemicals and ready for use in homemade products.

Steps

1
Obtain raw wool pieces or fleece that has not been washed. Raw wool or fleece can be purchased direct from a sheep farm, or, if you have your own sheep, use your own fleece.
2
Fill a pot with water until full. The pot should be large enough to contain all the wool. It might be easier to do this outdoors over an open fire if you have a large amount of fleece.

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3
Put the raw wool into the pan or pot. Push the wool into the water gently. Pieces of wool can be placed in mesh laundry bags to prevent them from breaking apart.^{[1]
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4
Add 1 - 3 tablespoons of salt to the water.^{[2]
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5
Bring the water to boil. Keep the wool boiling over a period of several hours. During this time, keep an eye on the boiling water and add more water as it evaporates off. Do not leave unattended as the water could boil off and burn the wool.
6
Clean and waterproof an area to place the wool.
7
Remove the wool from the boiling water. Do this using a pair of tongs or large slotted spoons.
8
Keep the water boiling until all the water evaporates off. The remaining substance is lanolin.^{[3]
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9
Pour the lanolin through a cheesecloth. This will remove any impurities. Pour it into a bowl and leave to cool. Once cooled, scrape off the lanolin and place into sterilized jars. The lanolin is ready to use.^{[4]
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Community Q&A

Question

Can I turn the leftover wool into yarn?

Community Answer

If the wool has been steamed or kept just under a boil (so that the water doesnt ripple at all), then the wool should still be usable. A better option is to do at least two 30-minute soaks in small batches in water that is at least 130F. Pull the wool from the water, let it drain, and place it on a drying rack over a pan. Transfer the water from the first kettle to a larger kettle and boil it there for a while to remove most of the water leaving the lanolin. Do the same for the second soak and dump the water from the second soak into the larger kettle. Keep doing this as you progress through your fleece, and you shouldn't get any felted wool as long as you dont agitate it when submerging or pulling it out.
Question

Does boiling the wool for such a long time affect it in any way? Can I still use it for spinning?

Community Answer

If you lower the temperature to steaming, you might be able to use the wool afterwards. However, when re-filling the pot, use hot water to avoid temperature shifts. A rapid boil or even a simmer for an extended period would likely felt the wool.
Question

Is the wool any good afterwards?

Community Answer

It's generally not a good idea to boil wool that you plan to spin into yarn. It makes it harsher-feeling. For carding into batts for quilts, stuffing, or needlefelting, it would be fine.