A Herdwick’s grey fleece is not easily dyed, and is coarse, and so is best suited to use as carpet wool. This Fleece seems to shed water and dry quicker than most wool. The kemp can be separated from the wool to create a softer hand. The staple length is about 4 inches on mine. […]
Continue reading about Oh The Fiber – Heavenly Herdwick Wool
Herdwick sheep have an interesting history. The word herwick comes from herdvyck which literally means sheep pasture. The origin of the breed is still unknown but they may have been ancestors to norse breeds brought by the Nords during Viking invasions or by a wrecked spanish armada ship. For hundreds of years this breed […]
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I found California Red wool to be fluffy and crispy with a downy texture. It definitely had a prickle as I put it around my neck. I would place this fiber in the 30s micron count. The staple length is usually 3-6 inches which is about what the staple of my roving is. I […]
Continue reading about Oh The Fiber – Crisp California Red Wool
California Red sheep were a happy accident. Dr. Glenn Spurlock in Davis, CA launched a project, of crossing Tunis and Barbados sheep. His aim was to create a wooless sheep. He Failed. However, his mistake caught the eyes of Aimee and Paulette Soulier, who found a love for the fiber and meat of this unique […]
Continue reading about Oh The Fiber – Classy California Red Sheep
Manx Loaghtan are a long lived sheep that will provide years of wonderful fleece. Some of these sheep retain the ability to shed their fleeces making rooing an option others will need to be sheared. The wool has a staple between 3-5 inches a fleece usually weights about 3pds making the wool really sought […]
Continue reading about Oh The Fiber – Marvelous Manx Loaghtan Wool
The Manx Loaghtan (pronounced Lock-tun), also spelled Loaghtyn or loghtan ,is a breed of sheep native to the Isle of Man which is located in the Irish Sea between Britain and Ireland. they are descended from primitive once found in Scotland, the Hebrides, and the Shetland Islands. The word Loaghtan comes from lugh dhoan […]
I tried one last attempt to multicolor kettle dye with dry dye. I prepared water and vinegar and put in 4 oz of punta fiber. Then I added cherry, reseda green, and Copenhagen blue dyes. I watched the fiber carefully making sure it didn’t go over 150 degrees. When the dyebath was clear, I let […]
I bought some white welsh mountain sheep roving to play with. It looks a bit kempy but I kinda like the look of the kemp. I love how it dyed up. Here is my spinning sample. This is definitely not a next to skin fiber in fact from everything I read it is mainly used […]
Continue reading about Oh The Fiber- Welsh Sheep Wool Part 2
I spun up the beautiful light brown. I find I am really liking this wool. The brown was super soft and had a tendency to nepps. I took out many of the nepps but some stayed making a slightly thin and thick yarn. The white was dyed robins egg blue with Cushings Acid Dyes. I […]
Since my lovely bamboo and banana fiber have yet to come in for me to play with I had some Falkland wool here. Falkland sheep are from the Falkland Islands. I find it interesting that the wool has some great history. Falkland Island wool is considered to be a superior wool fibre and has historically […]
