Shearing Day 2012

Shearing day was last Tuesday, April 17, but I've just now regained enough energy to actually blog about it. It kicked my tush, and we only have 6 animals!!

Sue of The Critter Ranch came to do the shearing, while my friend, Hannah was on-hand as an extra helper, and photographer extraordinaire. A huge thank you to Hannah for all the pictures here!! Another friend, Petra, came by to watch, and was quickly put to work wrangling lambs. Thanks to all of you for such a great day!

 

Starr was her usual prim and slightly haughty self. She pranced into the chute, and then even deigned to allow Hannah to have a picture taken with her. 

Knox was the first of the sheep to be sheared. He's now earned the name ObKNOXious. But we took him down a few pegs once he was naked. Not so tough now, are you?

However, with a fleece like this, I'll put up with him for a while longer! 

We decided that Emerald, the only pregnant ewe left, would go next, and we were in for quite the surprise!

Sue started shearing her at the back, but her wool was really thick and it was hard to get the shears through it. As we pulled the wool up to get the shears through, we realized that Emerald was rooing. Rooing happens in the more primitive breeds of sheep that have survived on their own for hundreds of years. In the Spring, their wool becomes thinner and will easily break off, allowing the sheep to rub against trees or shrubs to pull the old growth off.

This is ideal for hand spinners because we end up with a fleece that has no second cuts in it, and the tips on next year's fleeces will be more natural. It's great for the sheep because their left with a fine layer of new growth.

Emerald has a gorgeous fleece, and now she looks soft and fluffy!

It was time for a lunch break at this point. Look! Me with three bags full!!

First up after lunch was Sparkles. We were able to roo her to her shoulders and then had to shear the rest. I think next year I'll either wait a week or work on parts of the fleece as it's ready to release.

Of course, the star of the day was June. She helped hold her mom in, and inspected the fleece.

 

Petra showed up about this time and helped control "the pests." I don't think she minded too much!

 

We were able to roo Peridot to her shoulders as well. However, she looks the most tender of the three, and she probably could have waited until next week. She's getting limited sun time until she has some wool on her!

Her lambs hung out in a storage box at her head until she was all done.

And again . . . another gorgeous fleece! I love the gray of her wool.

All in all, a pretty awesome day that left me with four gorgeous Shetland fleeces and two wonderful llama blankets. And I couldn't be more thankful for good friends that are willing to work and laugh along with me while I navigate farm life!!

Leicester Longwool Locks

Say that three times fast!

I have a full Leicester Longwool fleece that was only sheared once that year, so the locks are almost (if not) a foot long. And the shine is amazing!

The only problem is that a LOT of it is cotted (matted) throughout. This past week, some friends and I sat down to some locks to see what we could salvage, and here's a sampling:

And to give you an idea of how long they are:

I was amazed at how shiny these are! They're the same locks I used earily as hair extentions, but now they're available in the shop as sets for doll hair and felting needs. 

I really, really wish I was a felter or doll maker. I can imagine a lot of these as manes for horses/unicorns/pegesus' or for hair on fairys/sprites elves. Maybe it's time Morgan and I start making Woldorf dolls!

Yummy Fleece

I always have too many projects going, so what's one more?

I recently purchased a simply wonderful BFL-cross fleece; the sheep's name is Aster. Barb Barnett of Barnett Sheep and Wool has been working on crossing breeds to get just the right fleece for her. It's also just the kind I like!

Long staple, but not too long. Soft feel, but still strong. And a gorgeous, silky handle. What more could you ask for?

This is the raw fleece right out of the box.

I washed and carded a handful, and the fiber didn't disappoint. It was easy to prep and then wonderful to spin.

This is 2.5 oz. of singles on the bobbin. I'm planning to spin up a second set of singles to ply with this for a 5 oz. skein of yarn.

The rest of the fleece will be washed, carded, dyed and put up in the shop. I'm just happy to get to play with it so much!

My Little Helpers!

Every fiber artist dreams of the day when their fiber is so in demand that they need to bring in an assistant (or two). Apparently, my day has come. . .

I was working on the computer in my back studio with Kat quietly doing puzzles beside me, or so I thought. The sound of splashing pulled me from my work and I realized Kat had gotten busy in the studio kitchen. My mind was a step ahead of my rushing feet as I remembered I had a very dirty Jacob fleece soaking in very dirty water in the sink.

The little bugger is fast and stealthy! She had dragged her stool over the sink and climbed up.

BUT! Look at that smart girl and good helper . . . just like Mommy, she put her gloves on before putting her hands in the water!

When I got to her, she was saying, "Wash, wash, wash!"

One helper may be a necessity, but TWO helpers is down right decadent.

Morgan proved to be a bit more effective as a fiber assistant.

Here she is sorting the colors of a Jacob fleece for my "Are Ewe Well-Bred?" club. As she's getting older, she's becoming more and more interested in wool processing, and I can assign her jobs that are actually helpful.

Now if I could only get the boys to help as well . . .

The Trifecta

Really. . . does it get any better than wool drying, sheep and llamas grazing and leaves changing?