I thought I should write a post about how I process wool here at Little Forge Farm. When I was starting out a few years ago, I was confused by all the conflicting advice on the internet. At one point I even tried to dry it in the dryer! Bad advice that was!! However it did make a neat felt ball! Read on to find out the steps in the whole process from start to finish.
Shearing
Firstly, you need to get the wool off the sheep. I would recommend a professional shearer. They are very knowledgeable in sheep handling, health and wool quality and can give great advice. I bought some electric clippers and tried having a go myself once. The sheep’s wool was so thick that I wasn’t strong enough to actually move it through the fleece. Our sheep were mostly bottle fed, and were pretty tame, but you have to know how to maneuver them to shear them efficiently and safely.
Sheep clippers are no joke and I cut my thumb once. It healed fine, but I felt stupid and meant I couldn’t do much for two weeks while it healed. So I would only recommend DIY shearing if you can’t find a shearer, or you live too remotely. If you only have a few sheep, pool them with a neighbor’s to make it worth the shearer’s while. Just be careful of worm contamination or spread of disease when mixing flocks.
Washing the wool
I use quite hot water from the tap, in a large tub, to soak the wool in batches. As I am adding the wool, I am removing any “shorts” (1 inch or less lengths that are too short to be useful) and vegetation. Here you can be selective and exclude really stained, daggy or matted wool (this wool is great for the garden). Ensure the wool is covered and keep pressing it down as it will float up. The hot water loosens the grease and dirt. Don’t agitate it too much, but pressing it down and squeezing it is fine.
After 10 minutes or so, remove it from the water and place it somewhere to dry. It’s best to do this in the morning in summer so it has all day to dry. I use the trampoline as the small holes in the mat allow airflow. I even have some small helpers to spread the wool. The kids love playing in the “snow”!
Carding the wool
Once the wool is dry, you can bag it up and bring it inside. Here you want to use a carding device: a carding machine, a flick carder or carding combs (hand carders). I prefer the latter as it works best for me. I first tease the wool width-ways and the spread it on the hand carders, cut end to the handles. Then card the wool, swapping combs until it looks like cobwebs or Santa’s beard.
This is then peeled off the carder and you have a rolag. You have to be choosy here, as the quality of the carded wool will directly affect the quality of your spun wool. If it is carded well, it will spin easily with no lumps. There are lots of different ways to card and some great videos on youtube. This is just one method. The carded wool that doesn’t make the grade for spinning is still useful for felting.
Spinning the wool
The budget friendly way to do this would be to make your own drop-spindle and spin it by hand. Again, there are great videos on youtube that teach this method. I use a spinning wheel here at Little Forge Farm. This is something that can’t be taught in pictures, so I highly recommend finding a mentor or spinning society to join. You could learn from a video or two, but a mentor can help troubleshoot when things don’t go to plan.
Plying the wool
If you don’t want single-ply yarn, the next step is to ply the wool. You can do 2,3,4 ply and so on by adding the number of single ply and tying them in a knot. Spin as you did the single ply but in the opposite direction, and you will be plying the wool. This is the quickest and most rewarding step for me as it goes so smoothly because all the hard work is done.
After this, take the yarn off the bobbin by using a niddy noddy to form a skein. In the form of a skein, you’ll need to “set” the ply in lukewarm water for 10 minutes and then squeeze it dry, then shock the fibers so the ply stays. This is done by smacking the skein against something or twanging it with your hands. Next you need to let it dry somewhere out of direct sunlight. For this I re-purposed an old wire shoe rack and mounted it on the wall. The skeins lay across the parts where the shoes would have been placed. I can fit three skeins across it horizontally, or I could hang them vertically and fit a lot more. The shoe-holder parts look like wide hooks when it is hung on a wall.
Dying the wool
This is an optional final step. You can dye the wool using foraged plants for color. There is a lot of info out there on which plant yields what color. The wool needs to be boiled in the dye with a mordant to make it stick. A natural mordant you can use is Alum. Just make sure you work with protective eyewear, gloves and in a well-ventilated space. You can have a lot of fun experimenting with different color combos in this step.
Other options
If you don’t own sheep, you could buy raw fleece from a local farmer and still have fun processing it on your own. If you think this whole process is tedious, you can support local and buy ready-made yarn from a market. Just beware the serious carbon footprint and miles racked up by some wool. Be sure to ask where it was washed, carded, spun and dyed. It is unlikely to all be in the same place.
I know of one local grower here that ships her wool 100 miles to be washed, 600 miles to be carded and spun and then somewhere else again to be dyed. And then shipped back to her to sell. I can’t get behind this when I have a much more environmentally friendly option that is home grown and home made. I love processing it myself, even if it takes ages, because it is something you can do in the evenings, indoors, rain or shine. It is relaxing, mindful and productive= rewarding!