The Fibre Garden : wool roving
Showing 1–18 of 33 results
wool roving
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
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
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
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
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
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.
Gotland – Grey (Top)
Classification: LONGWOOL
Combed top, very clean. This breed originated on the Island of Gotland, in the Baltic Sea and is widely raised in Sweden. It features lustrous and silky fibre, our supply being a blend of medium brown and creamy grey. Most often used for outerwear.
Micron count for Gotland is in the 48 to 52 range (though ours seems softer), with a staple length from 3 to 5 inches, relatively short for a Longwool. Felting properties are excellent.
Icelandic – Black (Top)
Classification: DUAL-COATED
Clean combed top with minimal to no veg. Icelandic sheep have a double coat, and nearly always both types of hair have been carded together. This top is very dark brown-black, sprinkled with lighter tones. Best suited for outerwear or non-garment items.
Micron count is difficult to assign because of the double coat. Wet felting properties are excellent, also great for needle felting.
PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM
Icelandic – Grey (Top)
Classification: DUAL-COATED
Clean combed top with minimal to no veg. Icelandic sheep have a double coat, and nearly always both types of hair have been carded together. This top is dark charcoal grey, liberally sprinkled with lighter grey. Makes a heathered yarn and gives intersting results when dyed. Best suited for outerwear and non-garment items.
Micron count is difficult to assign because of the double coat. Felting properties are excellent.
PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM
Jacob – Black (Top)
Classification: PRIMITIVE
Combed top with little to no veg. Jacob are one of the few multicolour (and multihorned) sheep, of ancient origin. This top is a deep and rich black-brown peppered lightly with grey. Certainly soft enough to use for sweaters and a scarf or three.
Micron count is typically in the 27 to 35 range, with a staple length of 5 to 6 inches. Felting properties are good.
PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM
Jacob – Grey (Top)
Classification: PRIMITIVE
Combed top with little to no veg. Jacob are one of the few multicolour (and multihorned) sheep, of ancient origin. This top is a gorgeous heathered blend of ash, grey and black. Certainly soft enough to use for sweaters, mittens and scarves.
Micron count is typically in the 27 to 35 range, with a staple length of 4 to 6 inches. Felting properties are good.
NOTE: Our supply usually includes a moderate amount of GUARD HAIRS sprinkled throughout the fibre. These are a fair bit coarser than the base fibres. Combing them out might be an option, if they are a problem for your intended project.
PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM
Lincoln (Top)
Classification: LONGWOOL
Combed top, very clean. This breed features smooth and long, lustrous fibre, our supply being an ivory-cream shade. Though often used to add strength in blends, Lincoln makes exceptionally beautiful lace-weight yarns that highlight the intricate stitchwork. Thicker spins are generally used for rugged outerwear.
Micron count for Lincoln is in the 34 to 41 range, with a staple length from 8 to 12 inches or more. Felting properties are very good.
Manx Loaghtan
Classification: PRIMITIVE BREED
Lovely clean top with very little to no veg. This breed is native to the Isle of Man but is also raised in the UK. It was brought back from the brink of extinction and is considered a rare breed. The name is said to translate basically to "mouse brown" and that's exactly the colour of this top, sprinkled throughout with soft grey. Said to be excellent for sweaters and socks, and this feels plenty soft for either.
Micron count for this top is 28 with a staple length of about 3 inches. According to a couple of our customers, this has average wet-felting properties. One reports that it did not work well for Nuno felting.
PRODUCT of UNITED KINGDOM
Merino – Light 19mic (Sliver)
Classification: FINEWOOL
Carded sliver/roving with very little veg. A lovely ash-grey, lightly streaked with charcoal. This will create a nice heathered yarn and will be extra-fun to dye. At 19 microns, it's nice and soft for against-the-skin wear. Merino is ever-popular with spinners and certainly being used like crazy by felters.
This supply has a staple length around 4 inches, which is fairly long for Merino. Felting properties are excellent.
PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND
Merino – Medium 19mic (Sliver)
Classification: FINEWOOL
Carded sliver/roving with a small amount of veg. Medium-brown in tone with a generous sprinkling of ash-grey, creating a lovely heathered yarn. At 19 microns, this is nice and soft for against-the-skin wear. Merino is ever-popular with spinners and certainly being used like crazy by felters.
Merino has a staple length from 2.5 to 4 inches. Felting properties are excellent.
PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND
Merino – Superfine White 16-mic (Top)
Classification: FINE WOOL
This is very special Superfine 16-micron Merino in a natural creamy-white colour. Very clean combed top. Excellent for spinning or felting by itself, but also perfect for blending with soft luxury fibres such as Angora, Cashmere, Yak or Qiviut. Felting properties are excellent. Staple length is in the 2.5 to 3 inch range.
PRODUCT of ITALY
Merino – Superwash White 22mic (Top)
SUPERWASH Merino. Classification: FINE WOOL
The most common fibre offered as Superwash, this is lovely combed Merino top in an ivory-white colour. Micron count is 22, which is plenty soft for against the skin wear and a multitude of other uses. 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.
Merino rates high for softness. Staple length is generally 2.5 to 4 inches. The Superwash treatment makes for a slippery feel during spinning when compared to untreated Merino, so it's not necessarily a good choice for beginners.
NOTE: Superwash fibre is NOT GOOD FOR FELTING.
PRODUCT of NEW ZEALAND
Merino – White 19.5 mic (Top)
Classification: FINE WOOL
Creamy-white natural combed top, this is always extremely clean and free of vegetation. Very popular with our spinning and felting customers.
Merino rates high for softness, and this 19.5 micron fibre is excellent for against-the-skin wear and a multitude of other uses. Felting properties are excellent. Staple length is in the 2.5 to 4 inch range.
NEW ZEALAND WOOL, processed in CHINA