To be honest, labelling is possibly even more complicated than actually making yarns. And of course we cannot spin yarns about our yarns. Well, we can and do in describing…
One important thing about this whole Wool Journey is that basically we have described getting from the sheep to the yarn, with various options along the way. However, a yarn…
So at last our journey is getting to the finishing stages: we have a yarn! However, it is a single yarn: twisted in one direction only. Single yarns alone are…
This photo illustrates the different fabrics obtained by knitting with Cotswold (on the left) and Shetland (on the right) – both as Double Knitting yarn. So both yarns will have…
Now comes the choice between carded woollen spun and combed worsted spun yarns. The photos above show a worsted spun Blue-faced Leicester yarn and knitted swatch on the left and…
Now we have a pile of evenly organised fluff: clean, blended and oiled so that it will go through the next machines. At a small scale, the clean fibre can…
As with home decorating, the amount of work done in preparation for spinning is (and feels like) much more than the actual final painting or papering! So far, we have…
Scouring and drying: the first stage of processing We are starting with wool, mohair or alpaca (or indeed cashmere) which has already been sorted and graded and is therefore a…
It is said that everything of a pig can be used but the squeak, and the same is true of fleeces! But as not all fibre is wonderful, so even…
Having described how the quality of wool is critically affected by the health and type of the sheep, it all begins again immediately after shearing! It is a real shame…
Harvesting in the case of wool means shearing. Pure new wool comes from live sheep and sheep are not killed in the shearing process! This blog item focusses on how…
Here we look at three important aspects of fleece and fibre: consistency/style, colour and animal health. Consistency varies considerably between different breeds, within the breed and across the animal. We…
Length is less relevant to the processor than to the breeder! After all, the breeder will be expecting to show animals in full fleece in all their glory, while the…
Wool from different sheep varies considerably – above are Wendsleydale,Shetland and Blue-faced Leicester – there are no prizes for guessing which is which! The point here is to illustrate difference…
Most of us know wool comes from sheep, and perhaps we think it is always white and all the same: this series of articles may make you think again! The…