Icelandic Wool & Hemp Blend, Carded Cloud, handspinning prep
This natural hand spinning & felting fiber is a carded cloud of Icelandic (natural colored) wool and Hemp in a 60/40 blend.
You are purchasing 4 ounces of natural Icelandic wool fleece carded with Hemp. Wool & Hemp, 2 primitive fibers come together for a one of a kind spinning experience....the possibilities are endless!
The wool has a staple length of 4 inches and the hemp fiber is approximately 4 inch long. These 2 fibers work well together and produce a very strong yarn/material that is soft and supple.
The finest Icelandic fleeces, grown in my regional fibershed (SD and MN) are used in this blend. The shepherds who raise these Icelandic sheep are focused on sustainably pasturing, caring and breeding their Icelandic sheep for the best health, breed & wool characteristics. The wool in this blend has a staple length of +4 inches and is gently harvested from an adult Icelandic ewe. The raw fleece is then skirted, washed, dried and thoroughly carded and ready for spinning or felting. The hemp is purchased in the US but cannot be guaranteed to be raised here (we are searching for local grown hemp fibers). The hemp fiber is approximately 4 inches. These 2 fibers work well together and produce a very strong yarn/material that is soft, warm and durable. Spinning hemp with wool makes for a versatile yarn as the wool brings warmth, softness and elasticity to combine with the durability, anti-microbial qualities of hemp. See the characteristics of each fiber below!
Characteristics of hemp:
Three times stronger than cotton
Good abrasion resistance/very durable
Anti-microbial and UV resistance
Naturally resistant to mold, mildew, rot
Readily takes dyes
Softens with each washing, without fiber degradation
Breathable
Washable or dry cleanable
Wrinkles easily/poor resiliency
Poor drapeability
Not as soft as other fibers
Characteristics of wool:
Comfortable
Luxurious, soft hand
Versatile
Lightweight
Good insulator
Washable
Wrinkle-resistant
Absorbent
Easy to dye
All of the fibers have been carefully sheared, washed and carded using ecologically safe soaps.
Spinners accustomed to commercial combed top, which can be dense and require significant predrafting, will likely find this carded preparation easy to spin. Biotayarns' carded wool blends are made by feeding washed wool (and other fibers) into a carding mill that opens up the locks, removes vegetable matter and passes it through several carding rollers that card the fibers but do not align the fibers parallel as in combed top. The wool you spin directly from this cloud will make a beautiful woolen yarn, the same as is spun from wool roving. Beautiful long draw spinning with this fleece!
Who grows your yarn? Thank you for looking.
