# Sheep to yarn



## *Andi

Now is my way, the only way ... no ... This is a guide to how I do work wool into yarn. I hope others will pitch in with how they do it also. (hint, hint )

First you need some sheep, yours or the sheep farm down the road. (or across the state. :gaah

There are more breeds of sheep than breeds of any other livestock species. Worldwide, there are more than one thousand distinct sheep breeds. There are more than 40 breeds in the United States. Sheep come in all different sizes, shapes, and colors.


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## *Andi

Then one much sheer the sheep, again you ... or the farmer down the road.
Grey lady said, she sure did like her hair cut and cleaning up under the apple trees.


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## *Andi

How does that go ...
Bah, Bah a black Sheep,
Have you any Wool?
Yes merry have I,
Three Bags full,
One for my master,
One for my Dame,
One for the little Boy
That lives down the lane

Well, a little more than three bags full...


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## *Andi

My hubby skirts the wool at the barn so I can skip that part. When you skirt wool you are removing very nasty wool that can not be used. Next up for me is to wash. I use an old top load washer, one that I kept just for wool.

I fill the washer with hot water and dish liquid. Add the wool and let it "SOAK" No agitating ...


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## Moose33

Hi Andi,
Please tell me all those bags of beautiful fleece didn't come from that one little fur baby. So far what you've done is exactly what I'd do if I had sheep and clippers. I've cleaned fleece fresh off the critter but in much smaller batches. I use an old salad spinner to get most of the water out after washing and rinsing. Then I put it on a sweater dryer and, during the summer, hang it outside to dry. Then comes combing or carding and off to the wheel or spindle. Would love to see more photos of how you finish the process.
Take care,
Moose


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## *Andi

Hi Moose, thanks for posting! (And thanks for the tip about the old salad spinner ... :2thumb

More pictures to follow but first a few pointers ...

:bullit:Some folks spin in the grease, spinning the wool without being washed. To be honest I have never came across a fleece, so clean I could spin in the grease. (but maybe one day )

:bullit:I soak the wool for about an hour, spin and remove from washer. I check the spin water to see how clear it is ... Dirty water, wash again. Clear water rinse and dry. 

:bullit:So I washed my wool twice and rinsed once. It is now on a sweater dryer (like Moose posted) to dry.

:bullit:One more thing you MUST watch out for ... A Chihuahua in the wool basket  LOL ... (picture to follow -storms- :gaah


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## Moose33

Hi Andi,
I've only spun once "in the grease." I got a really clean merino from the Denver stock show. The owner had blanketed her critters. My hands were in great shape for weeks. 

The salad spinner works really well. It won't handle large amounts at a time but its the most effective way I've found to get the water out without any felting. 

Chihuahuas and kittys, what's up them and wooly stuff? I've got a bag of "mystery" fiber in a basket and every once in awhile it makes the cat insane. 

Take care,
Moose


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## *Andi

Wool on sweater dryer to dry ...


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## *Andi

A Chihuahua in the wool basket...


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## lhalfcent

*Andi said:


> A Chihuahua in the wool basket...


LOL too cute!
I am getting some pics ready. had a busy busy weekend. whew!


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## lhalfcent

*Andi said:


> Hi Moose, thanks for posting! (And thanks for the tip about the old salad spinner ... :2thumb
> 
> More pictures to follow but first a few pointers ...
> 
> :bullit:Some folks spin in the grease, spinning the wool without being washed. To be honest I have never came across a fleece, so clean I could spin in the grease. (but maybe one day )
> 
> :bullit:I soak the wool for about an hour, spin and remove from washer. I check the spin water to see how clear it is ... Dirty water, wash again. Clear water rinse and dry.
> 
> :bullit:So I washed my wool twice and rinsed once. It is now on a sweater dryer (like Moose posted) to dry.
> 
> :bullit:One more thing you MUST watch out for ... A Chihuahua in the wool basket  LOL ... (picture to follow -storms- :gaah


I wash my wool twice for sure. I use my bathtub and can do an entire fleece in one tub full. I just let it soak a good long time.
And yes, if the rinse water is dirty, wash again. I had one fleece so dirty recently it took three washings and two rinsings! yuck
I wash on very sunny breezy days as i need my wood deck to dry the fleeces. they get good air circulation bottom up and top down then I just go fluff it and turn it periodically. Takes about 4-5 hours to completely dry.


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## lhalfcent

Box of dirty wool....










after washing, I got two full bags of fluffy clean fleece of the gray, but I had washed 6 fleeces, a variety of wools, and wound up with 8 large garbage bags of fleece! I am about to transfer them to boxes with Lavender from my garden as pest control.  The gray wool I cleaned is the top right bag.


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## lhalfcent

here is the full pic of the gray fleece I cleaned from that dirty box full..
(note: I didn't realize i had my jar of elderflowers brewing in olive oil in the pic!) 
lol


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## lhalfcent

Ready to start carding:

Here are my carders. Look closely and you will see I designated one for Left hand and one for Right hand. Because I use the right hand to begin the carding. You want to get out all the vegetable matter left over from washing and this helps separate the fibers which in the next pic you will see a finished 'rolag' sitting on the carder. The rolag is bit loose which is what I like. some make tighter rolls.


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## lhalfcent

A finished ball of yarn that I wound on an antique bobbin but because of the nice taper I use as a nostepinne!
This wool was different from any I have come across. lol It looks really rustic and rough but when plyed so so soft to the skin! I was surprised! see the swatch i knitted with this brown wool below.










another view of the nostepinne and tray of wound center pull balls of wool. 









swatch: 4" x 4" on size 6 knitting needles


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## Moose33

Hi Andi,
He's a doll. I'll bet its the smell that interests him. Maybe he's a hearding dog in disguise. 
Moose


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## lhalfcent

*Carding the cleaned wool*

I wanted to show how to card wool. 
But I couldn't get my video camera working :gaah: so i took some stills of me carding and will try to explain how it works step by step for those who have never done it. those of you who know this stuff please help me fill in the gaps. lol
Andi??? :wave: hehe

1. Take the left hand carder holding it with handle up and teeth down. Now take a handful of fleece and drag the fleece in a down ward motion filling the carder but not too much. (see below)
See how the teeth are facing up?









2. Now hold the left hand carder handle facing up, the comb part facing down. The right hand carder will face up so what you have are the teeth of the carders going in opposite directions. 









3. Now as you bring the right carder down the fleece will be separated and any vegetable matter or fuzzes that you can't separate , you pick off.








** notice the fibers are literally combed!










4. When you have done this a couple times you need to transfer the fleece to the right carder to finish your rolag. So now you must have both hand carders facing in a up position. Then touch the tops together (see pic) and gently comb down to transfer the fleece to the right carder. I hope you get that. 


















5. Now lay the right carder in your lap and starting at the top you should be able to roll the fleece down like a noodle. Then roll it gently back up and down again for a uniform noodle like thing and there you go! A spin-able rolag! 


















I will try to do a quick vid of this cuz I know for me, it is easier to watch something than just pictures.


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## *Andi

Picking the wool ...

When you "pick the wool" you open the wool ...

:bullit:teasing - open the wool by hand.

:bulliticking by equipment.

:bullit:Flick carding ...  (I would take a finger off.)

:bullitre-carding ... Much like lhalfcent showed us.

lhalfcent - Awesome pictures

I have a wool picker (picture to follow) It's not a mid-evil swing picker but a smaller, travel friendly picker. 

But more times than not I pick by hand or pre-carding. Again - using the hand card that was posted by lhalfcent.


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## lhalfcent

I am pretty much self taught Andi. lol
I want to learn all I can but also am willing to share what I have learned and still learning!
I tell ya tho...I am thoroughly addicted to fiber! Fibernista, fiberdiva etc....lol
fiberholic...fiber.........................


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## *Andi

Picking by equipment...


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## *Andi

lhalfcent said:


> I am pretty much self taught Andi. lol
> I want to learn all I can but also am willing to share what I have learned and still learning!
> I tell ya tho...I am thoroughly addicted to fiber! Fibernista, fiberdiva etc....lol
> fiberholic...fiber.........................


Thanks for posting & sharing your pictures. :2thumb:

They are awesome!


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## *Andi

Picture of the picker open ... watch your fingers ...

Like I said, I have a picker but more times than not, open the wool by hand or hand carders.


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## lhalfcent

so what is that? How do you use it? never saw that before.
geez, I didn't see this second pic but now I see why you said you could lose a finger. 
Methinks I will stick to my cards. lol however I am more motivated than ever to find a drum carder!


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## *Andi

lhalfcent said:


> so what is that? How do you use it? never saw that before.
> geez, I didn't see this second pic but now I see why you said you could lose a finger.
> Methinks I will stick to my cards. lol however I am more motivated than ever to find a drum carder!


pickers are just another option for fiber processing ...
They are a way to help open the wool.

You put the wool in one end then slide the top over the wool to open it and the nails open and pull the wool out the other end ... and sometimes you have to do it twice ...

Sometimes I use the picker, other time I pick by hand or cards...

Drum carder up next ...


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## weedygarden

I have my great grandmother's spinning wheel. It is 130 years old. I also have an Ashford. I have not spun in years.

At one time I had 3 fleeces for spinning. The moths found them and my whole house had moths. It took me a long time (years) to rid myself of the moths. They ruined lots of my clothing (sweaters, wool suits and coats), wool wall hangings and rugs. I'm scared to ever have a fleece in my house again.


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## Moose33

Hi Andi,
How does the "box picker" for lack of a better name, work? I've never seen anything like it. I love all the pictures, thank you.
Take it easy,
Moose


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## lhalfcent

Andi, so can you do more wool at a time with that? Seems like it could bunch up on occasion. lol But really cool idea.... hmmm
I just got me a box of finishing nails and a some left over wood from a chair and about to make a hackle for blending fibers and making slivers. will post pics when i get that point. today my grandbaby emma is coming to spend the day. She loves to play with the wool balls. lol


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## *Andi

With the storms coming in, posting pictures just don't want to work.:wave:

I found a few web pages showing different pickers in action ... so as soon as the sky clear, I will try again.


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## *Andi

Wool picker in action...

wool picker video page


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## *Andi

A different wool picker in action ...


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## *Andi

Pickers are just another option for fiber processing ...
They are a way to help open the wool.

When I had only a few sheep (under 10) I didn't worry about the picker but once my herd grew the picker can come in handy.

Some times I use it other times I do not.


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## lhalfcent

OOOO thank you for posting that! Now I need a picker! I have so much wool to card lol
ooo oooo ooooo I be looking more into this. Gosh another new thing to learn. lol
ok..so now on my list of stuff to get .... drum carder, wool picker....hmmm


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## *Andi

My drum carder ...


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## *Andi

And a few of the tools I use with my carder ...


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## *Andi

Carding is the process by which fibers are opened, cleaned, and straightened in preparation for spinning.

lhalfcent has posted some great pictures on hand carding. :thankyou:

Most drum carders are hand-cranked but some are powered by electric motor. (Mine is hand-cranked) They also come in a lot of different sizes. 

It is very easy to use ... wool is added until the storage drum's card cloth is full. (I use the paint brush which presses the wool into the storage drum.)


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## *Andi

Feeding the carder ...


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## lhalfcent

drool! lol
I guess i am doing things the old way.... (creak creak) picking by hand, using hand carders and either spinning by spindle or with my wheel.
Oh btw, my 10 year old boy needed a haircut and asked me to buzz him. His hair was so long and thick lol and you know...that crazy old spinner in me realized his hair felt eerily similar to alpaca! so I saved the hair and gonna blend it with some gray wool I got and see what happens on my spinning wheel!


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## *Andi

And that is cool ... :2thumb:

And let us know how the blending goes. 

Once the storage drum is full you remove the wool ...


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## *Andi

More times than not ... I will send the wool through the carder twice. At this time you can take off the whole batt or make roving ...


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## *Andi

Getting ready to spin ...


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## Ezmerelda

I am so glad you are sharing this with us, *Andi and 1halfcent! I recently went to a sheep shearing. Not only did we watch the shearing, we got to see a spinning wheel in action. But it was different looking from the traditional, Sleeping Beauty type. The spinner sat facing the wheel hub, and there were two pedals she pumped to spin the wheel.

I couldn't get close enough to get a good view of how exactly the wheel interacts with the wool, so I still don't understand how a spinning wheel works.

I can't wait to see that part of your posts. :2thumb:


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## Moose33

Hi Ezmerelda,
You might want to take a look at a you tube video titled Spinning Wool on a Rick Reeves Saxony Spinning Wheel. I'd put a link here but I'm challenged by technology. If I understand your description this should be close to what you were seeing.
Take care,
Moose


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## Ezmerelda

The closest version to what I saw that I can find is this:










But it's still not exactly the same. I think I'll see if the library has "Understanding the Spinning Wheel," since the videos I found all show the wheel from opposite the spinner, which doesn't help me at all.


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## Moose33

Hi Ezmerelda,
Your picture looks a lot like a Jensen Tina Original. 
Beautiful Jensen Spinning Wheels from Bountiful
Take care,
Moose


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## *Andi

I have a traditional, Sleeping Beauty type ... The Ashford Elizabeth 2 Fairytale Spinning Wheel ... It is a great wheel.

When it comes to spinning having someone to show you is the best. But I didn't know any one that had a wheel so I was on my own.

Books, youtube (watch more than a few  lol) and dvd's... with that said try, try and try again... 

My hubby ask me what I was going to use my "first" wool yarn for ... lol (it was a sight lol.) - Hate to tell him it will be part of a project I'm making for him. 

Hope to post some more pictures in a few days ... after I can my mators, grape jelly and make some more pickles ...


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## *Andi

Well I was going for a video but that didn't work ... :surrender:

So I go back to my last post... a friend to show you is best, but youtube and/or a DVD and try, try and try again.

You can see my wheel in my Gallery. 

http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/members/-andi/albums/sundancers-farm/


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## lhalfcent

Well I found a used drum carder!!! It is a pat green one and just made my first batt!
I am so happy.... also the gal i bought this from raises Jacobs!! LOL
Andi I can see why you like those critters. 
I bought some very dark brown almost black Jacob roving she did, some nice brown Shetland and a bit of merino/angora mix.
But now with all those bags of fleece I have i should have most of it batted (is that the proper way to say it? )  and will be better for storing until I can get to spinning it all up.
I have some lesser pebbly like wool that I am running through the drum carder for a quilt batt for my brother who asked me to make a king size quilt for his wife for their anniversary.
ok off to do more batts! 
will take pics.


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## lhalfcent

Here is a pic of my new/used Pat Green Drum Carder!! 









and here.... a box o' batts! :2thumb:


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## lhalfcent

don't think I ever showed my new spinning wheel i got earlier this year. I wanted a regular one beyond the pvc pipe one. lol
it's a Kromski Minstrel upright


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## *Andi

Very nice! Congrats!!!

You will love your carder or I do mine! lol 

And I love your wheel.


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## lhalfcent

:help: I am addicted to fiber!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL


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## Ezmerelda

lhalfcent said:


> don't think I ever showed my new spinning wheel i got earlier this year. I wanted a regular one beyond the pvc pipe one. lol
> it's a Kromski Minstrel upright


I think this is the wheel I saw in use at the shearing event I attended.


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## *Andi

*Plying yarn*

I quess plying yarn will up next ... 

But I think that will have to wait till Saturday ... Grandbabies and posting don't mix. lol

lhalfcent, do you ply on the wheel or spndle ... or both.

And on a side note ...  In the picture of your wheel, what is that yellow, furry thing in the back ground ...


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## lhalfcent

*Andi said:


> I quess plying yarn will up next ...
> 
> But I think that will have to wait till Saturday ... Grandbabies and posting don't mix. lol
> 
> lhalfcent, do you ply on the wheel or spndle ... or both.
> 
> And on a side note ...  In the picture of your wheel, what is that yellow, furry thing in the back ground ...


I ply with both but mostly the wheel now. 
I have been practicing on plying up to four ply for a strong gansey type yarn.

that furry thing is one of those pillow pets my daughter has.
you see the face sticking up but look closely and you will it is a lady bug! lol


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## Emerald

And here I thought that yellow thing on the couch was a dog! lol


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## *Andi

Emerald said:


> And here I thought that yellow thing on the couch was a dog! lol


That was what I was thinking also ... lol

Live and learn ...


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## lhalfcent

OH!! my bad!!! I thought you were pointing out the other corner!oops:
I am totally embarrassed! 
that tail is my dog Maisy! A golden retriever.
:gaah: :ignore:


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## *Andi

lhalfcent said:


> OH!! my bad!!! I thought you were pointing out the other corner!oops:
> I am totally embarrassed!
> that tail is my dog Maisy! A golden retriever.
> :gaah: :ignore:


Maisy, Love the name ...  and no need to be embarrassed. :flower:


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## Graebarde

I do hope you all will continue this thread. I had an aunt that was a spinner-weaver that I watched as a kid and it was interesting. I have a question though that one (or all) of you might be able to answer.. How many square yards of material can you get from a pound of wool? I realize that a pound in the grease (as is shorn) is more than the fleece weighs after cleaning and carding, so the second question is what kind of yield do you get from a pound of grease wool? Thanks for the information, and keep up the great thread.. and others.

FB


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## *Andi

Sorry ...

I haven't forgotten this thread ... just so much going on right now...


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## lhalfcent

*Andi said:


> Sorry ...
> 
> I haven't forgotten this thread ... just so much going on right now...


ditto! :surrender:


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## Graebarde

*Andi said:


> Sorry ...
> 
> I haven't forgotten this thread ... just so much going on right now...


Thanks for the comeback.. I realize there's more to it than posting on the puter... especially when you have a homestead to run. FB


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## *Andi

*OMG!!! Where has the time gone?*

I was getting ready to ply some yarn and this thread came to mind. 

So for that I need pictures, so in the morning that is what I will do.


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## *Andi

One thing for sure, my new camera is crap and will be going back come Saturday. My Lazy Kate thanks to my hubby and son.


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## *Andi

Plying is simply twisting two or more single threads together ... just remember to ply in the other direction ...


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