The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Food & crafts => Crafts => Topic started by: Bionic on June 06, 2016, 08:12:35 am
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I was given a couple of fleece yesterday.
Shame I have such a busy day today or I would be out there washing it.
According to their breed society "The wool is white and finer than that of many other hill breeds, being suitable for the manufacture of knitting or hosiery wool. The staple length is 15-20cm (6-8 inches), and the Bradford Count is 44-50, although the wool on the britch is coarser"
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White faced Woodland was one of the surprise fleeces of last year's Tour of British Fleece. Those of us who spun it when the cyclists raced through the breed's home range were very pleasantly surprised.
It's a characterful fleece, but not at all coarse, and seems to spin up really quickly.
I was mostly spinning small samples - 20g or less - of the relevant sheep on each day, but I enjoyed the WFW so much I just kept going until I'd spun all the fluff I'd been given. A really relaxing spin.
Enjoy!
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I haven't spun it Bionic, but when it mentions 'hosiery' it doesn't mean fine stockings but boot socks :D. They say the same about Manx and Heb - with the Heb (which is also very variable) estate workers had their tweeds made from the wool, plus their socks and caps.
I would be interested in how you find it, and what you do with it once spun :spin: :knit:
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If anyone wants to try whitefaced woody fleece, we have an almost limitless supply! At least I haven't finished dealing with last year's fleeces yet and its nearly time to shear again.