Its common for wool shirts to be blended with around 15% nylon. I think its for durability and cost. The more expensive brands (Pendleton ,etc) are 100% wool and are still preferable IMO.

I built my work bench the same way out from the studs in the wall. There is no other way to build a serious workbench IMO.

I make gun slings from nylon webbing because they are ridiculously overpriced for what they are. A pack of good quality adjusters and 100 yards of mil-spec webbing costs as much as two or three commercial slings, yet it makes multiple dozens.

Japanese import machines from the 50's-70's are the unsung workhorses of vintage machines. I see these a lot in thrift stores. The 70's Kenmores are maybe the most common machines out there. They seem bulletproof. I think the 60's breed of Japanese machines are even better, but they are harder to find. I would recommend anyone buy one of these over a Singer HD all day even if they cost the same.

Go to a Pendleton outlet. Don't know where you're located, but there are definitely brick and mortar stores where you can check out the blankets in person.

I love old oil lamps. I have a couple English duplex lamps that light up the room nicely during power outages. They generate a good amount of heat too.