I love, love, LOVE wool yarn. But, being something of a suburban/town girl, I don't know much about what happens before the yarn gets to the yarn store. So, Patrick and I are rectifying that situation and getting some great local yarn for The Knitting Nest.
Today, we went to Lamb's Quarters where Jane Haase taught us how to skirt fleeces. Skirting a fleece means taking out the really soiled sections of the wool as well as areas of excessive vegetable and fecal material. The mill will wash the wool, but skirting needs to be done before it goes to the mill. We chose our 11 fleeces that we're going to buy and then Jane showed us how to do the skirting. I was a little afraid that I might be grossed out by the process, but it really wasn't bad. (It probably helps that I can't smell really well and that I worked as a physician for 10 years which has it's moments of grossness!) We got two fleeces skirted before it started raining. We hope to finish the skirting this week so we can take the wool to the mill in a couple of weeks.
(I wanted to put some pictures right here, but I'm having trouble with this blog editing program. Pictures will be coming soon!)
Patrick and I really enjoyed our time skirting the wool. The work isn't hard, but it is important to do a good job so that the mill doesn't have to do extra work (which would cost us more). We also learned an awful lot about wool and sheep. I'd read about "staple length", but I got to actually see how it's determined. Jane showed us the sheep, which were pretty skittish around us. Eventually, I want to have pictures of the individual sheep whose fleeces are made into yarn.
Eventually, I'd like to teach the kids in the knitting/crochet club from the elementary school or the library about how wool comes from the sheep and gets made into yarn. I also want to teach them about different types of fibers and why they are used for different purposes.
A serious advantage to working with raw wool is that the lanolin makes our hands nice and soft!
Today, we went to Lamb's Quarters where Jane Haase taught us how to skirt fleeces. Skirting a fleece means taking out the really soiled sections of the wool as well as areas of excessive vegetable and fecal material. The mill will wash the wool, but skirting needs to be done before it goes to the mill. We chose our 11 fleeces that we're going to buy and then Jane showed us how to do the skirting. I was a little afraid that I might be grossed out by the process, but it really wasn't bad. (It probably helps that I can't smell really well and that I worked as a physician for 10 years which has it's moments of grossness!) We got two fleeces skirted before it started raining. We hope to finish the skirting this week so we can take the wool to the mill in a couple of weeks.
(I wanted to put some pictures right here, but I'm having trouble with this blog editing program. Pictures will be coming soon!)
Patrick and I really enjoyed our time skirting the wool. The work isn't hard, but it is important to do a good job so that the mill doesn't have to do extra work (which would cost us more). We also learned an awful lot about wool and sheep. I'd read about "staple length", but I got to actually see how it's determined. Jane showed us the sheep, which were pretty skittish around us. Eventually, I want to have pictures of the individual sheep whose fleeces are made into yarn.
Eventually, I'd like to teach the kids in the knitting/crochet club from the elementary school or the library about how wool comes from the sheep and gets made into yarn. I also want to teach them about different types of fibers and why they are used for different purposes.
A serious advantage to working with raw wool is that the lanolin makes our hands nice and soft!
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Sounds like fun! I really like where you are headed with this! I've met Jane very briefly, and she is a wonderful resource. -cheesehead
ReplyDeleteJane has taught us sooooo much! We enjoyed our time out at her place and are thrilled that she's been willing and able to take time out of her schedule for us. We're taking the yarn to Blue Hills Alpaca and Mill in a couple of weeks. The owner there is going to show us around so we can have a better understanding of the whole process. Yes, lots of fun on the way!
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