Is It Wool?

A Test for Wool

I have recycled fabric that I'm not sure is really wool.  I'd like to dye, cut, and use the fabric in a rug.  If it isn't wool, will it dye well, will it dull my cutters, will it hook?  I read an article that said chlorine bleach dissolves wool fibers, so I thought I would try this test.  I cut 2 squares of fabric to test, put them in bowls, and added straight chlorine bleach.

I left the squares soaking in the bleach over night, but nothing happened. Did the test work and were these fabrics not wool? I had nothing to compare with the results.

I did another test using a piece of natural wool that I had purchased from Dorr Mill.  I put a square of the wool in a bowl in bleach and left it over night.

The piece of wool almost completely dissolved. The test works.