The sheared fleece is sorted based on the quality of fibres obtained from different parts of the animal's bod. So I asked my Navajo weaving friend Roy Kady of Teec Nos Pos, Arizona (www.dinewoven.com) on the Navajo Reservation only 60 miles southwest of Cortez Colorado, to show and teach us the steps involved. ... metal contraption used to keep the tension across the weave (see photos below). An essential companion for spinners of all levels, The Spinner’s Book of Fleece (Storey Publishing, 2014) by Beth Smith provides fleece profiles of … There is much vegetable matter, manure and natural oil that must be removed. The fiber diameter of the wool, ... Washing/Scouring 3. The professionals that I know don't clean the fleece nearly enough for my taste, I have paid to have fleece washed, only to have to do it myself all over again, now I don't bother paying someone else, but I have learned to be very picky about what fleece I will buy. Blending/Dyeing 4. Raw fleece. The fleece of sheep (or cut hair of sheep) contains dust, dirt, dried sweat and grease, etc. Rotate your fleece… Follow the instructions above, but when you’re working with a small amount of wool at a time, you can use a sink or washing tub. Also shake well to remove any small second cuts. In the January 2010 newsletter, we talked about keeping your sheep’s wool in tip-top shape in preparation for shearing (see “Winter Care for a Cleaner Fleece”). This fleece must be cleaned before it can be processed into wool yarn. This can be deceiving, as it will wash out. Scouring makes the fleece of sheep clean. Too much agitation causes the fleece to felt and tangle, while grease left behind from missed lanolin makes the wool prone to rips and tears. I fill the tub with the hottest water I can get, add either Dawn dishwashing detergent as you mention, or one of the made-for-fleece detergents, which are considerably more expensive, and no more effective than Dawn. Or process it and sell the finished product? Once fleece is carded its ready to use for felting, or spinning it into yarn. Even though washing raw sheep fleece requires only a few items and little prep time, you can still wash it incorrectly. This is the wool and not a "skin". . If you do live in a humid climate, make sure there is good ventilation where you store your fleece. 3. As our fleeces are not washed they are rich in natural lanolin, so have a “greasy” texture. This is the fleece from Moose Moose’s rear end area —– I would never have guessed how lovely it would be, based on the raw … Washing locks. I grew up on a farm, and we had sheep, and my mom sheared the sheep’s wool to make yarn. It is also called "grease wool" because of all the oil and lanolin in the wool. Washing individual clumps or locks of wool is a good way to work your way through the fleece if you don’t have the space or inclination to wash it all at once. 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