Natural Roving & Top – Page 4

Sparkle-On Natural Snow

100% trilobal Nylon. We also label this as Sparkling White Icicle. Extremely clean combed top, and very white but with a wonderful reflective sparkle. Staple length is about 3 to 4 inches, the fibre very fine. Absolutely wonderful for adding some glitter to any spin, and also a favourite of felters. Trilobal nylon is triangular in cross-section, rather than round. These flat surfaces are what cause it to reflect light and appear to sparkle. It is sold under various brand names, including Firestar™. Though it works nicely in "natural" white, this dyes beautifully with acid dyes. In blends this is carded at around 5 to 20% by weight, and just a little bit does the trick. Our "Sparkle-On™ Natural Snow" and "Nylon - Sparkling White Icicle" are cross-listed here together. The only difference is the size of the bags offered. PRODUCT of ITALY

$2.75 – $27.00 Select options

Suffolk (Rustic Roving)

Classification: DOWN BREED Thick and chunky Rustic Roving, with a moderate amount of vegetation debris. Creamy-white in colour with mottlings of darker shades here and there. Suffolk is the most common breed in North America, used widely for meat production. This is a versatile fibre with low-lustre wool but plenty of loft for good insulating value. Great for mittens, socks, outerwear and rugged sweaters. Micron count is in the range of 25 to 33, with a staple length around 2 to 3.5 inches. Wet-felting properties are poor. An excellent core wool for needle-felting. PRODUCT of CANADA

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Superwash Merino 50/Bamboo 50 (Top)

50% Superwash Merino / 50% Rayon from Bamboo Lovely and clean combed top. Staple length around 5 to 6 inches, the colour creamy-white. A favourite of dyers for making fancy hand-painted braids for spinners. This is a very soft and luxurious-feeling blend, carded in a streaky manner that helps to preserve the sheen of the bamboo. Use it to spin everything from against-the-skin garments and beyond. Very pleasant in the hands! Because only the wool will strike with acid dyes, the effect is exotic and streaky both in the top as well as the finished yarn. The Superwash component makes for absolutely no felting during dyeing, and later during laundering. A tip for dyers: when presoaking and rinsing, keep this top in a mesh lingerie bag to help hold it together. NOT SUITABLE FOR WET FELTING.

$4.75 – $36.66 Select options

Superwash Merino 50/Tencel 50 (Top)

Lovely and clean combed top. Staple length around 4 to 5 inches, the colour is a streaky blend of ivory and white. A favourite of dyers for making fancy hand-painted braids for spinners. This is a very soft and luxurious-feeling blend, carded in a streaky manner that helps to preserve the sheen of the Tencel. Suitable for a wide range of yarns. Because only the wool will strike with acid dyes, the effect is exotic and streaky both in the top as well as the finished yarn. The Superwash component makes for absolutely no felting during dyeing, and later during laundering. A tip for dyers: when presoaking and rinsing, keep this top in a mesh lingerie bag to help hold it together. NOT SUITABLE FOR WET FELTING.

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Targhee (Rustic Roving)

Classification: FINEWOOL Thick and chunky Rustic Roving, with a moderate amount of vegetation debris. The colour is a bright ivory-white. Targhee is a very bouncy fibre that can be spun woolen or worsted. The staple is longer than Merino and therefore it's easier to spin. This breed is well-suited to next-to-skin garments, outerwear or anything else. Micron count is in the range of 21 to 25, with a staple length around 3 to 5 inches. Wet-felting properties are excellent. Good as a core wool for needle-felting PRODUCT of CANADA

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Tencel (Top)

100% Lyocell. Very clean combed top, in "natural" white. Staple length is about 4 inches. Technically this manmade fibre is called lyocell. It's in the rayon family and made from wood pulp. Tencel® has been embraced by spinners and knitters alike, because it is fantastically soft with a terrific sheen and wonderful drape. Excellent for lighter summerwear as it absorbs moisture well. Tencel® can be spun alone or blended with other fibres. An intriguing choice for those that can't wear wool. < Since this is a plant or cellulose fibre dyers must use fibre reactive dyes. Natural dyers can resort to techniques used on cotton, such as alum-tannin premordanting, or Aluminum acetate. We don't know how Tencel® responds in an indigo vat. That being said, when blended with protein fibres, acid dyes will leave the Tencel® alone during dyeing, which makes for some wonderful streaky or heathered effects, depending on how well the fibres are blended.

$4.50 – $34.73 Select options

Tunis (Rustic Roving)

Classification: MEDIUM WOOL Thick and chunky Rustic Roving, with a moderate amount of vegetation. The colour is a bright ivory-white. Tunis is a rather bouncy fibre that can be spun woolen or worsted. The staple is longer than Merino and therefore it's easier to spin. This breed is well-suited to midrange and outerwear garments. Micron count is in the range of 25 to 30, with a staple length around 4 to 6 inches. Wet-felting properties are low to moderate. An excellent core wool for needle-felting. PRODUCT of CANADA

$5.00 – $38.59 Select options

Viscose – Bright (Top)

100% Viscose Rayon. Extremely clean combed top. Lustrous white, with a staple length of 5 to 6 inches. Viscose is a type of rayon, and considered to be the very first successful manmade fibre after numerous attempts to create artificial silk. It is manufactured from wood pulp. Take advantage of the lovely sheen and soft handle to use this in blends for summer garments. Since this is a plant or cellulose fibre dyers must use fibre reactive dyes. Natural dyers can resort to techniques used on cotton, such as alum-tannin premordanting, or Aluminum acetate. We don't know how viscose responds in an indigo vat. That being said, when blended with protein fibres, acid dyes will leave the viscose alone during dyeing, which makes for some wonderful streaky or heathered effects, depending on how well the fibres are blended.

$3.75 – $28.94 Select options

Welsh – Dark Brown (Top)

Classification: DOWN-TYPE WOOL Combed top with a very minor amount of veg. The colour is deep brown-black, liberally sprinkled with ash-grey hairs. This is Welsh Mountain, a lofty fibre that makes terrific tweed fabrics, blankets and rugged outerwear. Micron count is in the range of 32 to 40, with a staple length from 2 to 6 inches. We can't locate any information in regards to felting properties. PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM

$4.00 – $30.87 Select options

Welsh – White (Top)

Classification: DOWN-TYPE WOOL Combed top with a very minor amount of veg. The colour is ivory-white, liberally sprinkled with pure-white hairs and the odd light-brown as well. This is Welsh Mountain, a lofty fibre that makes terrific tweed fabrics, blankets and rugged outerwear. Micron count is in the range of 32 to 40, with a staple length from 2 to 6 inches. We can't locate any information in regards to felting properties. PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM

$4.00 – $30.87 Select options

Wool 60/Flax 40 (Top)

60% Wool / 40% Flax Very clean combed top in an interesting heathered blend of ash-grey, soft tan and cream. Staple length is around 5 to 6 inches. This blend is softer than you might imagine, with what is obviously a Finewool of some type and a good grade of flax. It seems well-prepared and should be easy to spin. We wonder if it might just work for lace weight yarn. Feels plenty soft enough for midrange to outerwear garments. This could be dyed with acid dyes for a streaky effect. Might it work for felting??

$6.00 – $46.31 Select options