[landroverroy]

 I 've got about 20 fleeces free to anyone who wants to collect them. They're mostly white Texel and Suffolk X, but there's one brown shetland and 2 black ones.
 We live near Goole.

[Rosemary]

Just as well Fleecewife is off-line 

Why don't you sell them? At least you'd get a bit of income to offset costs.

[landroverroy]

 I don't sell them because the price I will get does not cover my time and diesel in taking them to the collection point.
 When you realise that the most expensive carpets, jumpers, house insulation sheets etc are all wool, it annoys me that someone is making an apparently good profit out of paying me a pittance. So I would rather give them away.

[Fleecewife]

Just as well Fleecewife is off-line 

Why don't you sell them? At least you'd get a bit of income to offset costs.

Aha  but fleecewife isn't totally offline  and anything about free fleeces is bound to catch my eye 

Landroverroy, there are other places to sell your fleeces than to the Wool Board, although this year they are paying double last years prices for good quality fleece.  I don't sell mine to the Wool Board either but I do sell them to craft workers for somewhere between £10 and £20 each.  Surely a couple of hundred extra quid in the coffers each year is worth a little effort.  That old thing about every bit of the pig has a use except the squeak can apply to sheep too, and wasting their fleece seems, well, a waste. There are other things you can do too, which require a little investment, such as getting the wool spun up into knitting yarn and selling it on (the Natural Fibre co will dye it too), or having it woven into blankets (with nice dark stripes) either to keep, to give as Christmas gifts, or to sell on.  The thing about giving something away is that whoever you give it to will take their cue from you and consider it worthless.

[landroverroy]

 You're absolutely right in what you say Fleecewife. However, I have tried alternative markets, without success.
 Some years ago I invited Howden Spinners and knitters to an open evening to view my fleeces. At that time I had mostly rare breeds and a wonderful selection of colours, mostly Shetland type. Each fleece was carefully wrapped with every vestige of crap removed. I even gave them free ice cream as it was a really warm evening.
 About a dozen people turned up. They examined my fleeces, for which I was only asking £5, said nice things about them, and NOBODY bought any. So boll*cks to them.
 I have looked into other things, but haven't the time to make anything from them myself, apart from hanging basket liners, which are quite effective.
 So I'd just as soon give them to someone who would use them, as there's only so many hanging baskets you can water in an evening......

[bigchicken]

Ive been down a similar road with my fleeces landroverroy & fleecwife said much the same to me. I have a small flock and not every fleece is of a good enough quality to be of much value so it is not worth the time and money trying to get a buyer and in the past I have tryed to give it away with little success. I now don't bother now and burn the fleeces, it all seems such a waste.

[robert waddell]

as a new sheepherd i have Hampshire downs only 2 clipped this year    but there will be 4 next year   the two ewes this year yielded a 5 kilo fleece and a 6 kilo fleece with a staple length of 3-4 inches  the only thing was they fell to bits and we burned them  the shearlings should yield a good fleece in march    what i do with them    i will just need to wait and see     maybe compete against rosemary next year 

[SallyintNorth]

Would there be any gardening / growing use for fleeces?  They certainly insulate - could they be planted through for young plants which need / want warm ground?

[Fleecewife]

You're absolutely right in what you say Fleecewife. However, I have tried alternative markets, without success.
 Some years ago I invited Howden Spinners and knitters to an open evening to view my fleeces. At that time I had mostly rare breeds and a wonderful selection of colours, mostly Shetland type. Each fleece was carefully wrapped with every vestige of crap removed. I even gave them free ice cream as it was a really warm evening.
 About a dozen people turned up. They examined my fleeces, for which I was only asking £5, said nice things about them, and NOBODY bought any. So boll*cks to them.
 I have looked into other things, but haven't the time to make anything from them myself, apart from hanging basket liners, which are quite effective.
 So I'd just as soon give them to someone who would use them, as there's only so many hanging baskets you can water in an evening......

How obnoxious of them    Well I would agree b*****ks to them all    There's something about certain groups of spinners which makes them like that. And I've been on the receiving end of that sort of thing too.

Which just leaves the internet - you could make good sales of your best fleeces that way.  Remember to add postage and packing to your price.  There are nice spinners and felters out there who really do appreciate a good or unusual fleece, I promise.

[Hannes]

So where shall we sell our fleeces this year? roughly 65 of them, Blackface. We sit in South Scotland and sheared last month but havent sold yet. Any tips where to get the best deals?

[morri2]

Try eBay.  There's quite a few fleeces sold there, for decent prices too.  Have a look.

[lachlanandmarcus]

I planted cabbage and brussel sprout seedlings through pieces of fleece and had no slug problems at all.

I dont sell mine either as I have to shear outside, mainly with hand shears and it just isnt possible to keep the fleece clean and in good condition in a (this year esp!) soggy field.

[colliewoman]

try using etsy, it's like ebay but for all things arts and crafty. it has to be hand made, vintage or an arts and crafts supply

i dont know how to do the link thingy so you'll have to google it yourself

[feldar]

I Use mine to cover my Dahlias and other tender plants through the winter, i also wrap them around pots in the shed, they breath so are ideal for this and the mice and rats don't like them, i think they have too much lanolin in them.
So try some gardeners and see if they want them

[ellied]

I would have had them like a shot but Yorkshire is a bit far to be passing by and collect even a freebie sadly.

I would love to have a go at taking the fleece through to carded wool for my felting but haven't a clue what it involves so would hesitate to pay £20 plus postage for something I'm very likely to ruin and then use to insulate the garden tap instead

If anyone in Yorkshire can collect on their way up to Fife/Perth mind...