How to choose a fleece

I think I may have mentioned that I brought home an 11lb fleece from MD Sheep and Wool festival. I’m going to use this fleece as an opportunity to talk about how I choose, scour, process, and spin this fleece.

I want to make sure that I mention that this is just how I pick my fleeces. You may pick a fleece based on different criteria, and in fact this is just how I pick a fine to medium fine wool fleece. This wool is destined to be a sweater for me, and a matching sweater for my daughter. It’s 11lbs of wool, so it’s probably going to be several other articles of clothing too. I have plenty of fiber to experiment with. Hooray!

 

I didn’t mention the sproing test in the video above. That’s where I hold a lock at the tip and cut end, and sort of pop it next to my ear, giving a sharp hard tug at either end. When I do that, I’m listening for a clear popping noise. I shouldn’t hear any crackling or other signs of breakage. The discolored tips on this fleece are stable. I didn’t hear any sign of breaking when I popped the lock.