My first Raw Fleece arrives today! Any advice?

[WildflowerCB]

I am so excited. I ordered a raw Jacob fleece and it arrives today. I will be doing a little dying(my first time dying roving/locks, but I have dyed yarn before), carding and spinning all for the first time. I will be borrowing a wheel and a set of carders from my MIL tomorrow. Any advice for my first time? I have been watching videos like crazy, but will just be teaching myself IRL. So, if there is anything you wished you knew when you started please share!

[Only]

No advice but you'll have to post pictures! I want to get more into fibers beyond knitting but I need another hobby like I need a hole in my head.

[opheliaspins]

I love raw fleece. So pretty! Just lots and lots of ho****er and soap and patience. I find it takes a lot of washes to get it clean, and don't be surprised if even after that when you are flicking/carding you still find a little dirt, it will never be as clean as a super processed roving.

[Rdesonia]

A Jacob fleece may not be the best for spinning. I know someone that raises them. It is usually good for felting and they only use theirs for felt. It is considered coarse wool. (Of course this depends on the herd and if it is 100% Jacob)

I wish I knew that you have to do the first wash at over 120 degrees to get the lanolin off. (140 is best... So you have to be able to turn up your water heater or you will end up boiling the water for washing like I did as my hot water heater has a safety feature that makes it so it can't go above 120) IF you try to wash in 120 degree water the wool will not get as clean and you will have to repeat the washing process. I washed in less than 1lb batches trying to keep the same staple lengths together.

If you dye before you card... it comes out variegated. If you want true solid colors... dye AFTER you card it or wait till it is yarn. The color will be more consistent. (But I do like the unusual look of dyeing it before it is carded. It is a look that can't be accomplished the other way. It has a "depth" that pictures don't do justice to. I recommend trying it and seeing if you like it.) It will take the dye quick. I put my pot to boil... let it cool (to stop the boiling) and then added the wool quickly. I pressed it down without stirring and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Normally it took all the color without additional heat.(Except blue for some reason?). I dye only one color at a time because you can always spin different rovings together to make a colorway.

For spinning... always spin in one direction so you can ply yarns in the opposite.

[WildflowerCB]

Originally Posted by Rdesonia A Jacob fleece may not be the best for spinning. I know someone that raises them. It is usually good for felting and they only use theirs for felt. It is considered coarse wool. (Of course this depends on the herd and if it is 100% Jacob) I wish I knew that you have to do the first wash at over 120 degrees to get the lanolin off. (140 is best... So you have to be able to turn up your water heater or you will end up boiling the water for washing like I did as my hot water heater has a safety feature that makes it so it can't go above 120) IF you try to wash in 120 degree water the wool will not get as clean and you will have to repeat the washing process. I washed in less than 1lb batches trying to keep the same staple lengths together. If you dye before you card... it comes out variegated. If you want true solid colors... dye AFTER you card it or wait till it is yarn. The color will be more consistent. (But I do like the unusual look of dyeing it before it is carded. It is a look that can't be accomplished the other way. It has a "depth" that pictures don't do justice to. I recommend trying it and seeing if you like it.) It will take the dye quick. I put my pot to boil... let it cool (to stop the boiling) and then added the wool quickly. I pressed it down without stirring and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Normally it took all the color without additional heat.(Except blue for some reason?). I dye only one color at a time because you can always spin different rovings together to make a colorway. For spinning... always spin in one direction so you can ply yarns in the opposite.

I know Jacob wont be the finest wool, but I have read that it is great for beggining spinners to learn on. It has a really long staple length, so we will see how it turns out. Also, it was pretty affordable so I don't have to feel too bad about how it comes out. Thank you for the input on water temperature, I will make sure and boil some water to get the heat up to 140.

[Rdesonia]

Originally Posted by WildflowerCB I know Jacob wont be the finest wool, but I have read that it is great for beggining spinners to learn on. It has a really long staple length, so we will see how it turns out. Also, it was pretty affordable so I don't have to feel too bad about how it comes out. Thank you for the input on water temperature, I will make sure and boil some water to get the heat up to 140.

Most water heaters can be turned up. It takes about an hour to get to temp. and then you can reset it when you are done. I just have a funky water heater. I was using the wash machine method I saw on Youtube. (Soak and spin... not actual agitation. I have a top loader so I could do that. ) It would have been much faster if I didn't have to rewash and add boiling water.
(I also bought a bunch of mesh lingerie laundry bags at the dollar store to hang it outside to dry... instead of racks.)