Natural Roving & Top – The Fibre Garden

As much as we love dyed colour at The Fibre Garden, we pride ourselves on the collection of natural fibre shades we have been able to gather together. Some breeds of sheep vary just a little their colour offerings, while others (such as Shetland) have a myriad of natural colours. When different colours are available, we try to carry a range from white through dark. Certain shades we can regularly get, others come and go from one year to another.
Don’t be afraid of combining natural shades with dyed ones either. That opens to door to all kinds of unique effects in your spinning, knitting, weaving, felting or other crafts. Same goes for combining animal fibres with plant fibres or manmade ones. The sky is the limit!

Our selection of natural top and roving changes frequently, so be sure to come back and see what’s new.

Fibre comes in various preparations.

TOP: fibre that has been washed and then combed, which removes a good degree of vegetation and gives a preparation with fibres of a similar length and in a parallel arrangement. Top is used to produce smooth and strong true worsted as well as semi-worsted yarns. The vast majority of what people refer to as “roving” is actually combed top.

ROVING: fibre that has been washed, picked and then carded, usually on a giant carding machine at a commercial mill. The fibres may be of varying lengths, in a somewhat jumbled arrangement rather than parallel. Roving is best suited to woolen and semi-woolen style spinning, which is lighter and airier than worsted. Roving also sometimes contains more vegetation than combed top, but not always. It depends on how dirty the fibre was to begin with, how it was skirted and picked, and on the milling equipment being used.

RUSTIC ROVING is a term we invented. It describes the thick and chunky rovings that come from a couple of our suppliers. If you’re used to working with neat and tidy combed top, Rustic Roving may come as a shock to your eyes and fingers. It can be two inches or more in diameter and usually chunky and rough in appearance compared to some of the lighter and airier rovings we carry. Most of our Rustic Rovings are found in our Canadian natural wool line.

SLIVER is a hazier term in the trade, in our experience. Most often it seems to be roving that is drawn into a thinner preparation than regular thicker roving. Sometimes it’s just another word for combed top, particularly in New Zealand. We always try and qualify which it is, when we know.

Blends (5)

Exotic (14)

Canadian Rustic Roving @ The Fibre Garden

Wool - Canadian Rustic Roving (7)

Wool - Imported Top & Roving (39)

Bamboo (Top)

100% Viscose of Bamboo. Very clean combed top, pearly-white in colour. Staple length is 3.5 to 4 inches. PRODUCT of CHINA

$3.75 – $28.94 Select options

Bamboo Bast (Top)

100% Bamboo bast fibre. Clean and tidy combed top. This type of Bamboo comes from the stem fibres, produced in a way similar to flax or hemp. It's different from the more common viscose or rayon type of Bamboo. To our hands it feels finer than hemp or flax, more akin to Ramie. The natural colour is ivory-cream, with a medium lustre. Staple length is around 4 to 5 inches. PRODUCT of CHINA

$8.00 – $61.74 Select options

BFL – Superwash White (Top)

BFL = Blue-faced Leicester. Classification: LONGWOOL It's difficult to find any Superwash top other than Merino, but here you have BFL! Perfect for knitting items that require easy laundering. Wool is conditioned through an enzyme process that strips off the outer scales, which prevents felting. This also makes for a different effect during the dyeing process, because Superwash fibre sucks up the dye quickly. This fibre is creamy-white in colour with plenty of lustre. BFL rates high for softness. Depending on spinning method, this breed can create a soft and smooth fabric with excellent drape. Micron count is generally in the mid-20s with a staple length from 3 to 6 inches. NOTE: Superwash fibre is NOT GOOD FOR FELTING. PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM

$5.50 – $42.45 Select options

BFL – White (Top)

BFL = Blue-faced Leicester. Classification: LONGWOOL Creamy-white natural combed top, lustrous and soft! Excellent for dyeing at any stage of the spinning process. BFL rates high for softness. Felting properties are average. Depending on spinning method, this breed can create a soft and smooth fabric with excellent drape. Micron count is generally in the mid-20s with a staple length from 3 to 6 inches. NOTE: our labels may indicate this as UNTREATED, which simply means it is not Superwash BFL. PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Cheviot (Top)

Classification: DOWN-TYPE WOOL Nice clean combed top with very little veg, in a bright off-white tone. There are different regional variations on Cheviot, but they have similar fibre. Cheviot is known for having bulky and springy staples of medium length with very little lustre. Its traditional uses range from blankets and carpets to midrange and outerwear clothing. It's a strong fibre and can be useful for socks. Micron count is usually in the 27 to 33 range. This supply has excellent long staple in the 5 to 7 inch range. Felting properties are low. PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Columbia (Rustic Roving)

Classification: FINEWOOL Thick and chunky Rustic Roving. Current batch contains a fair amount of vegetation. A North American breed, fairly widely raised in the western US and Canada. The locks are blocky with a high crimp and fairly fine fibre diameter. Adapts well to both woolen and worsted styles of spinning, used for midrange and outerwear garments, including socks, sweaters and functional items. Micron count is usually in the 23 to 31 range (comparable to Corriedale) with a staple length of 3 to 6 inches. Wet-felting properties are good. A good core wool for needle-felting. PRODUCT of CANADA

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Coopworth – Dark (Roving)

Classification: LONGWOOL Carded roving with very minor amounts of veg. Coopworth was developed in New Zealand in the late 1960s and sports a lustrous fleece with good crimp. This roving is dark brown in colour, sprinkled with lighter tones. Most often used for midrange, outerwear or non-garment items. Micron count for Coopworth can vary, but this supply is among the softest you will find, at 33, with a staple length of 6 to 8 inches. Wet felting properties are good. Excellent for needle felting. PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Coopworth – Light (Roving)

Classification: LONGWOOL Carded roving with very minor amounts of veg. Coopworth was developed in New Zealand in the late 1960s and sports a lustrous fleece with good crimp. This roving is medium grey-brown in colour, sprinkled with lighter tones. Most often used for midrange, outerwear or non-garment items. Micron count for Coopworth can vary, but this supply is among the softest you will find, at 33, with a staple length of 6 to 8 inches. Wet felting properties are good. Excellent for needle felting. PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Coopworth – White (Roving)

Classification: LONGWOOL Carded roving with very minor amounts of veg. Coopworth was developed in New Zealand in the late 1960s and sports a lustrous fleece with good crimp. This roving is creamy-white in colour. Most often used for midrange, outerwear or non-garment items. Micron count for Coopworth can vary, but this supply is among the softest you will find, at 33, with a staple length of 6 to 8 inches. Felting properties are good. PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Corn Fibre (Top)

100% Corn Fibre. Also known as Ingeo. Extremely clean combed top. Pristine, true white in colour. Staple length is 4 to 5 inches. One of the "new" man-made fibres, and apparently it stands up pretty well to any "green" claims about its manufacture. As a spinning or knitting fibre, it is soft and lustrous, breathes and absorbs moisture well, has good drape and warmth and is easy to care for. Corn is machine washable but should be air or tumble dried only. Do not iron! Considered a plant or cellulose fibre but neither acid nor fibre reactive dyes will work on corn fibre. Natural dyers could try using techniques used on cotton, such as alum-tannin premordanting, or Aluminum acetate. We do not know yet how corn behaves in an indigo bath. That being said, when blended with protein fibres, acid dyes will leave the corn alone during dyeing, which makes for some wonderful streaky or heathered effects, depending on how well the fibres are blended.

$7.00 – $54.03 Select options

Corriedale – Dark (Top)

Classification: MEDIUM WOOL Very clean combed top, rich chocolate-brown with a slight amount of grey. We always highly recommend Corriedale for beginning spinners, because it's easy-to-handle and neither too short or too long. Well-suited for midrange, outerwear and non-garment uses. Micron count for Corriedale can vary, but this supply is among the softest you will find, at 30, with a staple length of 3.5 to 4 inches. Felting properties are very good. We carry many colours as well, see Fibres> Dyed Roving & Top> Wool> Ashford Corriedale. PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND

$6.50 – $50.17 Select options

Corriedale – Light (Top)

Classification: MEDIUM WOOL Very clean combed top, in a beautiful light ash-grey sprinkled with black. We always highly recommend Corriedale for beginning spinners, because it's easy-to-handle and neither too short or too long. Well-suited for midrange, outerwear and non-garment uses. Micron count for Corriedale can vary, but this supply is among the softest you will find, at 30, with a staple length of 3.5 to 4 inches. Felting properties are very good. We carry many colours as well, see Fibres> Dyed Roving & Top> Wool> Ashford Corriedale. PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND

$6.50 – $50.17 Select options

Corriedale – Medium (Top)

Classification: MEDIUM WOOL Very clean combed top, in a lively blend of soft ash and medium grey. We always highly recommend Corriedale for beginning spinners, because it's easy-to-handle and neither too short or too long. Well-suited for midrange, outerwear and non-garment uses. Micron count for Corriedale can vary, but this supply is among the softest you will find, at 30, with a staple length of 3.5 to 4 inches. Felting properties are very good. We carry many colours as well, see Fibres> Dyed Roving & Top> Wool> Ashford Corriedale. PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND

$6.50 – $50.17 Select options

Corriedale – White (Top)

Classification: MEDIUM WOOL Very clean combed top, creamy-white in colour. We always highly recommend Corriedale for beginning spinners, because it's easy-to-handle and neither too short or too long. Well-suited for midrange, outerwear and non-garment uses. Micron count for Corriedale can vary, but this supply is among the softest you will find, at 30, with a staple length of 3.5 to 4 inches. Felting properties are very good. We carry many colours as well, see Fibres> Dyed Roving & Top> Wool> Ashford Corriedale. PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND

$6.00 – $46.31 Select options

Falkland (Top)

Classification: MEDIUM WOOL Combed top, very clean. Falkland is similar to Corriedale in character, creamy white in colour with a soft hand. Not always considered a true breed, but more of a crossbreed that has developed on the Falkland Islands due to isolation over many years. Suitable for midrange, outerwear and non-garment uses. Micron count for Falkland is 26 to 34 with a staple length of 4 to 5 inches. We can't find a listing for felting properties but it's probably good.

$6.00 – $46.30 Select options

Finn – White (Top)

Classification: MEDIUM WOOL Combed top, very clean and a bright creamy-white. More formerly called Finnish Landrace or Finnsheep and indeed it originates in Finland. Finn has a fairly long staple as well as good crimp and is suitable for next-to-skin, midrange or outerwear uses Micron count for Finn is 24 to 31 with a staple length of 3 to 6 inches. Felting properties are excellent.

$6.50 – $50.17 Select options

Flax Top – Bleached

100% Flax (linen) fibre. Very clean combed top in a fairly narrow sliver, bleached to a bright ivory white. Staple length is 5 to 6 inches. This may be a good choice for those curious to try spinning flax for the first time. Our supplier suggests it can be either dry or wet-spun and no distaff is needed since it's already in a well-prepared form. It feels pretty soft for flax. Anybody up for the challenge? The various dyed colourways we carry begin with bleached flax, since it provides a good white base that won't lend the brown or tan tones that natural flax would give. Since this is a plant or cellulose fibre dyers must use fibre reactive dyes. Natural dyers must resort to techniques used on cotton, such as alum-tannin premordanting, or Aluminum acetate. Flax strikes just fine in an indigo vat. That being said, when blended with protein fibres, acid dyes will leave the flax alone during dyeing, which makes for some wonderful streaky or heathered effects, depending on how well the fibres are blended. PRODUCT of ITALY

$6.50 – $50.17 Select options

Flax Top – Natural Brown

100% Flax Natural coloured (not bleached) flax top which we get from Italy but it probably originates somewhere in Eastern Europe. Staple length about 5 to 6 inches, and a nice fine-quality fibre. This is the same flax we offer as dyed colourways, before it's been bleached and then dyed. PRODUCT of ITALY

$6.50 – $50.17 Select options