Well they aren’t actually taking over ……yet.
Tags: animal rescue, animals rescue maine, fiber animal products, fiber animals, fiber processing, raising fiber animals, roving wool, sheep wool processing, spinning fiber roving, spinning fleece, Vlog, wool for spinning, wool for spinning for sale, wool for spinning yarn, wool processing
As I explained in the last post I’m working on a custom fiber processing and spinning order for a customer. We had decided to blend 50% newfoundland dog fur with corriedale wool to make it more spinnable. This why I did a blend: Hair doesn’t have the scales the same way wool does to catch onto itself and twist as easily and I could card longer and shorter fibers together. I also knew that after washing I would have to pick the fiber so you lose some in the processing itself.
washed and picked newfoundland
corriedale on left, newfoundland on right
lovely fluffy carded batts to come……but before I do that I wanted to say that the newfie fiber is silky… not rough but has a prickle….. it did not pass the neck or bra test but it would make a lovely fiber for outerwear.
carded 50/50 blend of newfoundland and corriedale
any color variation is actual newfie fiber itself
So what do you think of my batts?
Tags: alpaca fleece, dog fiber, fiber animal products, fiber animals, fiber processing, raising fiber animals, sheep wool processing, spinning fiber roving, spinning fleece, spinning wool by hand, wool for sale, wool for spinning, wool for spinning yarn, wool processing
Newfoundland
I had a customer bring me some Newfoundland dog fiber in white. I didn’t know much about the breed so here is my quick and dirty lowdown about “newfies.”
Newfoundlands are working dogs. They have a variety of colors and can be black, brown, gray, or black and white (Landseer). They were originally bred and used as a working dog for fishermen. They are known for their giant size, tremendous strength, calm dispositions, and loyalty. Newfoundland dogs excel at water rescue/lifesaving because of their muscular build, thick double coat, webbed feet, and innate swimming abilities. With all these qualities I can see why someone would want a “newfie.”
Newfie beside his shed coat …..OH the fiber!!!!!!
I wanted to share my experience in working with this unusual fiber. My customer wanted me process and spin the fiber to create a hat. We decided to blend the fiber in a 50-50 percentage with wool and to leave it undyed. When I first had the fiber delivered it was kinda well icky and dirty. I forgot to take a before washing pic. I will tell you this dog loved to roll outside 🙂
So it got a good wash!!!!
My kitchen did smell like wet dog afterward …. but who could resist this face….
newfie pup
Information and Pictures from Wikipedia.
gotland sheep courtesy of the British Gotland Sheep Society
Gotland fleece is dense long, lustrous and grey in shades from light silver to almost black. It has a clearly defined curl and staple. It has a soft handle. The grey is blend of black and white fibers:
gotland lamb by jimmyroq
Gotland grow the best fleece through summer and autumn. A winter shearing will produce the best fleece. The fleece grown during the winter and early spring is soft and fluffy but may have no pigment. Breeders often do a second clip in the spring to make way for new long wool growth. The curl is measurable and they use it as a means of grading the wool- Small: 5/6mm diameter; Medium: 7/8mm diameter: Large: 9/10mm diameter.
gotland lamb 2 days old by jimmyroq
The fleece is typically 29 to 34 microns in diameter. Lambs wool can be in the low to mid 20’s micron…..making this a medium wool. The fleeces weigh between 5-7 pds.
Information from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotland_sheep
http://www.americangotlandsheep.org/index.html
Barlow Ram Lambs-thanks-to-the-American-gotland-sheep-society
The amazing colored sheep is of Swedish origin named for the island of Gotland. They are believed to be a crossbreed of the Gute, Karakuls and Romanovs. These 3 breeds are still around today.
romanov sheep by baalands on flickr
Karakul sheep by Margaret Cook
Gute sheep by Kajvin on flickr
Gotlands are a medium build and fine boned. They weight around 165 to 187 pounds for a ram and a ewe weighs in at 110 to 154 pds. They are approximately 26 inches tall at the withers. Their black heads are polled and sometimes have white markings. The head and legs are free of wool. They have a curious, calm and friendly disposition. Don’t let the delicate look of these sheep fool you they are great lambers and milkers, hardy and adaptive.
Gotland sheep by feltivation on flickr
These lovely sheep are raised for meat, pelts and wool. They can be found in Sweden, Britain, Denmark, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Australia. An now the U.S. as of 2003 thru use of artificial insemination Gotland sheep are being established thru the American Gotland Sheep Society and the Gotland Sheep Breeders Association of North America.
Information from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotland_sheep
http://www.americangotlandsheep.org/index.html
I totally screwed this up at the beginning by cutting my head out of the shoot but I decided to go with it.
As we were feeding the animals this morning we got a visit from some wild turkeys. I thought it was crazy cool because we’ve never had turkeys in yard before.
The turkeys came back in the afternoon as well and the hubs tried to woo them closer with his turkey calling skills………he needs more practice.
I’ve been busy at the drum carder and dyepots for the new store launch.
carded batts and dyed yarn
Keep your eyes peeled for Friday’s store launch!!!!!
