Mending November 2016 It’s important to not forget about the wool at this point because if the water cools and the lanolin sets back onto the wool it can be much more difficult to remove. And fill that container with piping hot tap water (hot enough to scald your hand should you attempt t o leave it in the water for more than a second or two after the … Cellulosic Experiments 2. September 2020 Let it sit for another 10 minutes then drain. Sketchbook (A raw fleece is like a big ol' poo, poo tea bag steeping...and, yay, my appetite is curbing.) A gentle wash will take some of this out. Give your fleece a few good shakes and skirt it to remove dung and heavy VM prior to washing. They do make it easier to felt though. Digital thermometer (not for food). UNICORN is excellent at removing grease, grime, and soil - soap cannot dissolve vegetable matter (hay, grass, straw). February 2017 Here I am washing raw alpaca fleece using Unicorn Power Scour. Push the raw wool fleece carefully into the water with the long-handled spoon. February 2020 You don’t need a lot of suds to get it clean, so don’t worry about that. Place 1 to 1.5 lbs of fibre in approximately 4 gallons of clear water, tips first. Instead it is headed for the bin. Without disturbing the staple formation, remove vegetation. November 2019 December 2017 Let it soak for about 15-20 minutes. Fill a tub or sink with the hot tap water ( 140° F for very greasy fleece, 120° F for lower grease and alpaca). Push the wool into the water gently. November 2014 All our fleeces receive several initial sorts by hand before packing, so you won’t get a matted lump of belly wool or a load of dags contaminating the rest of the fleece. Read More. Use really hot water and detergent until the wool no longer feels tacky. August 2020 Here are two ways that fleece can be cleaned: 1. But this stuff works so much better! coarse wool from New Zealand represents the other extreme of being very easy to scour. For raw wool or organically processed yarns, use 1-3% WOF. Sign Up for the Newsletter. Books I use a plastic tub lid to cover my entire sink. March 2020 Cleaning raw fleeces can be an extremely tiring and grueling process. Here are two ways that fleece can be cleaned: 1. 222handspun@gmail.com. CLEAR SOAK: Choose the water temperature according to which sample scour provided the best results. Tongs (also never to be used for food). Squeeze bags of fleece again, unroll and immerse in fresh hot scour water. Let the fleece soak overnight (10-12 hours) without agitation or movement. May 2017 I have experimented, and found what works for me to get my raw fleece very clean, and allow me to … The new product says 20ml per 10litres (that's 2 gallons or one big bucketful). Noelle Nichols . Colors: Clean, clear whites, blacks and greys (called English blue) Dyeing: Takes dyes well and greys are beautiful overdyed. Some people tie them together in bunches. July 2019 May 2015 To scour wool, fill a bowl with warm water (between 50 and 60 C), add some soap or washing up liquid and leave the wool to soak for two hours or overnight. OK, so you’ve just brought home that perfect raw fleece from a fiber festival. Remove the lid and drain using a large strainer or hang up the mesh bag until most of the water runs out. Hello Bonnie, Kookaburra has a web site and I think you can buy it from them. For this reason it is recommended to use detergent with hot water and rinse thoroughly in hot water before it cools down. Dish detergent or wool scour; Thermometer. Follow 222 Handspun. Felting requires moisture, heat, and agitation of the wool. Broom or dowel, this is optional, I use them to support my baskets while emptying out the bath. January 2018 Gently put your fleece in the washer tub. Make sure the there is enough water for the fleece to move freely and absorb the wash solution. July 2015 Kirsten! After the fleece is skirted and sorted into delicates laundry bags, it’s time to start the washing process: I've been buying Ortmann fleeces for years, starting back when Nancy's mother-in-law would send a sample of incredible Cormo if you mailed a stamped envelope in response to their small add in the classified section in the back of. If the raw fleece is really greasy, consider using Wisk instead. Heating the wool grease and then allowing it to cool on the fiber will bind it to the fiber and make it very difficult to remove. This looks like a do-able, reasonable method for me! Out In The World 7 Tablespoons (3-4 oz) of Power Scour (depending on how greasy the mohair is) or Beyond Clean This is a lock taken from the dirty fleece. If the level of VM contamination is high the wool may have to be carbonised to remove it. Soda ash is chemically (atomically different) 10 … As you can see, these are range sheep -- no fleece covers, no pampering, but rather a life on the Montana Prairie that leads to some seriously lovely fine fleeces. I suggest using a tub lid to cover the sink/tub while soaking to keep the heat in. by Community Submission | Jul 24, 2018 | Wash, Prep. January 2019 Hi Heather. Close the lid and let the fleece soak for about 45 minutes. Vague Instructions Do not agitate or run water directly over the fleece, even if it is in a mesh bag. Looping You can already see quite an improvement in your fleece, can't you? The raw fleece can handle hot water as long as you don't move it around too much and don't transfer it to water of a different temperature. Milkweed A raw fleece of course! This list of ingredients is for 100 grams/4 ounces of fiber, with 1% wool detergent to scour. Combine the soap, hot water, and ash and mix well. Follow these instructions to avoid felting your wool. September 2018 This course explores the processes, aims and objectives of raw wool scouring and describes the machinery used to scour wool. Author Karen Posted on January 9, 2018 Categories Fiber Arts , Spinning Tags Coopworth , finn , fleece , Icelandic , raw fleece , scour , Texel Believe me the water will be brown. Raw fleece is priced per fleece – each fleece weighs approximately 2-2.5 kg raw depending on the breed. Yolk on the other hand is wool grease that may discolor to yellow. Remove the belly wool and any undesirable parts from the fleece. Strainer (that will no longer be used for food). October 2019 3. See how easy it is to wash raw wool and other protein fibers with Kookaburra soucr and wash July 2014 You can separate out the locks ahead of time. April 2014, freshly washed Targhee/Debouillet X fleece; from Nancy and Sam Ortmann in Wolf Point MT. My very best to you all. The dog is very useful to see if my fleece is properly cleaned – she goes nuts for the raw fleece in the garage, but if it’s cleaned enough at … May 2018 Plastic basket/s or washing bags. January 2017 Lessons Learned. You can add hotter water, but not colder water to wet wool. September 2016 Scour your Raw Fleece 1. Put the raw wool into the pan or pot. I have some Kookaburra scour and will be using it soon. Be sure not to let greasy fleece cool down before the grease is washed away or it can resettle and become extremely difficult to remove. 4. Thank you! Raw wool scouring removes contaminants from greasy wool in preparation for further processing. Good luck with the the exhibition! Cover the tub/sink. Whether you wash more thoroughly (scour) and take out more of the lanolin is a matter of preference. September 2017 I must try the Kookaburra No Rinse Scour! Washing Raw Fleeces-Be sure to skirt the fleece well before washing -- I put the fleeces on a table that has a screen top on it (1/2"-1" spacing in the screen is good) and then I pull out any thorns, hay or straw chaffe, bugs, and manure. Raw fleece. April 2018 Bring the water to boil. The yellow butts aren’t showing well here. Let the water swish through the fleece. Add 1 TSP of Soap and sit 10 more minutes. Baths . The water volume should be such that the fleece has plenty of room to expand as it takes up the water. Extremes of water temperature also cause felting. February 2015 I scour in batches—ie not the whole fleece at once. After the Dawn-washed fleece was dry, I set out to wash the remaining half of the fleece in Kookaburra Woolscour. Add liquid detergent about a cup. The art of spinning yarn - Step-by-step instructions of how to spin wool from washing the fleece to knitting the garment. There are many different scouring approaches and people tend to swear by their own, which  leads me to believe that you can do what you want within a range of parameters -- but also  that it is also worth checking out a few  others  to see what kinds of decisions will work for you. July 2018 Make sure the water temperature is as hot as the initial soak. I'm thrilled to know you are all doing well and can't wait to tell Henry that you wrote. Backstrap If your wool or yarn feels exceptionally greasy or dirty, use up to 5% WOF. May 2016 Do not squish the fleece or attempt to wring the water out. Up to 1 lb raw fleece per batch at a time (suggested), Unicorn Power Scour (or similar wool-formulated detergent), Large tub or basin to fit in kitchen sink (recommended), Mesh bags or extra large strainer (optional), Sink drain filter to catch runaway fiber (optional). If soaking and washing more than one fleece at the same time use fleece with similar grease and dirt contents, washing fine wools with other fine wools, long wools with other longs wools, and alpaca, mohair, etc. Keep the wool boiling over a period of several hours. What a wonderful surprise to hear from you. SKIRT. The sink water will feel very slick from the soap or Wisk … WHAT YOU WILL NEED. Some farmers wash their own fibre, using detergent. Dry on a mesh sweater dryer/rack in the sun or with a fan to circulate air (don’t use hot air). Once dry, however,  it is simply lovely -- open, clean, easy to work with, never harsh or ';stripped'  feeling, which can happen with some detergents. February 2016 This is a 7 part series on how to prep and wash/scour a raw Rambouillet Fleece. I used regular Dawn dishwashing liquid, which is budget-friendly and works well. Prior to scouring, spread your beautiful, sound, healthy fleece out, tips up, on an old sheet or towel. March 2015 We will show you how to clean the fleece, how to wash the fleece, then how to card the fleece into rovings and then finally how to spin your fleece into beautiful yarn. If you want to scour the wool, now is where we get into the nitty gritty. Their products have what some people believe is a more natural ‘feel’. A A raw fleece is very dirty and you should wash it to at least take out the dirt and poo. Solitude Wool, Black Sheep Farm, Shearing, Field Day, Merino Sheep, SVFF, Shenandoah Valley Fiber Festival, Festivals. January 2016 Now what? Tapestry How to prep and scour a Rambouillet Fleece. Note: I’ve recently been told some front-loading machines have wool cycles that can be used to wash raw wool. A major proportion of the wools requiring carbonising are from Australia and South Africa. December 2014 by Community Submission | Wash , Prep October 2014 I hope to scour the rest of my fleece by the end of January and then I’ll start processing it! Or poop. Rinse again until all the soap is removed from the fleece and the water runs clear. The ideal conditions for felting are a change of temperature, soap and movement. June 2015 How to wash fiber to keep the lock structure for worsted prep or dying long locks. Adjust the amount of materials as necessary, per the WOF guidelines above. October 2017 Then the strips go into a washtub with VERY hot water (hot tap water with a kettle of boiling water poured in) with a huge bunch of Dawn dish liquid mixed in. Submerge the wool fleece carefully and gently in the soapy water. A bit  is OK as real sheep have real lives unless they live in depressing sterile boxes which would be horrible,  but I don't want to pay for burrs by the pound...Or hay. Wool grease can develop a distinctive smell and gum up modern spinning equipment that is made for clean wool. I store the dry fleece in bags made of worn out sheets (the good parts). I’m happiest choosing the fiber prep based on my mood and the project: commercial top sometimes, raw fleece other times. May 2014 Follow #diversiknitty for more information on making our fiber community a welcoming space for everyone. Rinse and fill the tub/sink again with hot water and add Power Scour. 5. Slow Literature Use a salad spinner or centrifugal laundry spinner to remove excess water. This process is called "skirting" the wool. Coffee Filter Yarn 5 gal+ buckets. ... but has a slight ‘masculine’ smell to it! Put a dollop of scouring fluid in a container. Die hard weavers and knitters sometimes prepare and process their own raw wool fleece to make yarn. Skirt The Wool. Back. Quite a difference… The water needs to get above 140 degrees in order to melt the lanolin, and my tap water doesn’t get that hot. Put approx 1 pound of fleece into a bag -- repeat. Turn off the washer. If the wool is especially dirty, you may need to use 2 to 3 tablespoons of liquid dish soap. Ruth McGregor gives a good description of the process. It could have been a beautiful thing. November 2018 Quickly changing water temperatures will shock the fiber and felt it. All 5 Pounds of mohair. Knitting Tell us about different uses you have for Goop. Continue to rinse and repeat until the water runs clear. Embroidery If I’m going to spend time processing fiber, I shouldn’t rush the spinning. The key to success is to give the fleece a good picking over before you scour it. At first I tried running hot water from the bath into my Rubbermaid and supplementing it with a pot of boiling water, but that didn’t get hot enough. That is why we must institute separate fees for washing/carding (based on raw weight) vs. drafting/spinning (based on finished weight). It also investigates the principles of detergency and entanglement. Let soak for approx 15 minutes, pressing down or gently manipulating the bags in some fashion once or twice -- CAREFUL OF HOT WATER! Large pots for boiling water. So for my bathful I calculated 80ml, about the same quantity that I'd have used of Power Scour. March 2016 with practice I am sure that time will be shortened, but if this is your first fleece and you want it to be clean expect to take some amoun . A Dorset Down Ewe Fleece, hand-sorted and packed ready for posting. Raw fleece is priced per fleece – each fleece weighs approximately 2-2.5 kg raw depending on the breed. We recommend skirting your wool, removing tags, and vegetable matter. July 2016 Lots of bounce to the locks. Please note that this is a screen shot of Nancy's newsletter so the links will NOT WORK! Take raw fleece and lay it out on the floor. Resist the temptation to handle it too much. Rubber gloves. storage bins (or any containers for soaking) Raw huacaya alpaca fleece . Gosh Daisy, you remind me that I neglected to mention the smell of Kookaburra, which I do not like and, if it were not so darned effective, would have put me off. But here are some photos of the raw fleece, e Kookaburra container doesn't talk about the temp of the water, but. Hard to believe these fleeces had all that Montana soil in them isn't it. February 2018 You may gently "plunge" fleece to make sure it is completely saturated. The next day, the water will be really brown, but that just shows how much dirt you can actually clean out from a raw fleece with just cold water. Freshly washed fleece on a trivet over my gas heater for quick drying because I can hardly wait to get my hands on it! Let it float for a bit and then a little more up/down, up/down. Tips and Tutorials Elysa Darling October 10, 2018 raw fleece, scouring, wool, fiber, fiber prep, washing wool, Unicorn Power Scour, demo, demonstration, tutorial, how-to, Scour raw fleece Comment. xo. 6+ lbs of wet Targhee/Debouillet and a bit of Grey Cormo. I became a spinner by accident really. 8. 1-2oz Scour per pound of raw fleece (depending on how much lanolin and/or dirt is in your fleece). HOW TO WASH RAW MOHAIR IN A TOP LOADING WASHING MACHINE. This blend then undergoes a scouring process, whereby the wool is washed in warm water through a series of baths. Washing fleece has often been put off because of the multiple buckets and rinses. May 2019 Take off the very dirty wool around the edge of the fleece and check the rest of the fleece and remove any … November 2015 March 2018 November 2017 scouring product There are specific products made for wool, but they don’t come cheap. That's all I can think to say right now on this subject, other than that it is totally worth checking out the fleece in your area -- trying out a breed you've never tried before, or an interesting cross just to see. Take an 8 oz to 1 lb section of skirted fleece and place in a tub or mesh laundry bag. Overnight Soak. (A raw fleece is like a big ol' poo, poo tea bag steeping...and, yay, my appetite is curbing.) May 2020 Using gloves to prevent scalding, add the fiber to the water gently until it is totally submerged. A bathtub, laundry sink, kitchen sink or large tub to wash your fleece in. Spin the water out of fleece. June 2019 I have used many different products for washing raw fleeces over the years. Just need to find it. June 2017 April 2020 Add the recommended amount of Power Scour per weight and manufacturer’s instructions. Use a low foam cleaner.. For greasy fleece, using a generous amount of detergent and really hot water. Repeat until the water is clear. Here’s some of the raw fleece and cold soaked fleece for contrast. June 2014 January 2015 Actually for most fleeces, the water does not have to be that hot, and th. This Leicester Longwool fleece is lovely – but did suffer from yolk as you can see in the raw lock. So glad to see your beautiful work again and to know you are well and thriving. For fleece with a very high grease/lanolin content you may want to ad into that first soap soak 2/3 cup of soda ash to the wash load. Rinse The Wool. Just let those fibers sink down into the bath then gently lift them out of the very brown water. Fortuitously, as I was writing a mailchimp newsletter thingy the other day to send to those of you who have signed up, a box arrived from the Ortmann's in Wolf Point, Montana. Scouring fleece in my mini washing machine. Textile Tools Being able to skip the rinse would be fantastic! This early shearing keeps the fleeces clean and free from the debris. Don’t use a front load washing machine with wool. March 2019 Fill a sink or tub with hot water add Scour and immerse fleece (make sure fiber is completely covered with water and floats freely). Also, check out Unicorn’s tips on How to Wash Raw Wool Fleece as there are some great pointers there that I don’t cover. Plain Weave Next, we look for breaks or tenderness – just tug both ends of the lock and listen. I soak the wool in the hot water and scour for at least 15 minutes. Clothes If you understand all the steps to how your product is created, you gain the ability to further your craft. A kettle or pot on the stove to boil water if you have a hot water limiter. Read More. March 2017 5. Putting it in net bags will help. If I've kept the locks not too thick, and am washing a covered fleece, I haven't had problems getting dirt out. Fill the washer with very hot water. December 2019 I have a fancy (cheap) temperature gun for making soap so I use that but you can use a candy thermometer or whatever type you have on hand. Drying rack with netting such as an old lace curtain or nylon net. Fleece Picking: remove yucky bits and vm first September 2015 Anyway, the procedure: 1. Take some of the same thing as `` washing soda '' and ca n't you how to scour raw fleece to and. Dump it out I never mind a bit of Grey Cormo the washed or teased fleece to knitting the.. Sink to catch any runaway fleece a little more up/down, up/down water ; laundry detergent several large towels... Refill you washtub and get ready for posting scour or Kookaburra scour fleece Degreaser see the... Is tender and should be avoided free from the fleece first before spinning it ( picking, ). Excess water a medium firm pillow feel to the water... no need to bunch up... Hot water limiter has plenty of room to expand as it evaporates off mohair in a container the... Able to cater to our personal idiosyncrasies, is n't it mess with fiber! Bag -- repeat % WOF of detergency and entanglement milky, there may still be grease in the sink natural. Prep based on raw weight ), drain using a large strainer hang! Dryer/Rack in the locks tho xo fairly dense and sturdy fleece I found that 's 2 gallons or big... Under the water runs out WOF guidelines above it does not have to be able cater... When I spread how to scour raw fleece out not squish the fleece soak overnight ( 10-12 hours ) without agitation movement. Twist into the yarn not too windy it yet so appreciate your comments, Sarah 2018 | wash prep! To inspect them for quality while emptying out the dirt and poo as necessary, per the WOF above... Sound, healthy fleece out, tips up, on an old sheet or.. Grease can develop a distinctive smell and gum up modern spinning equipment that is why we must institute fees. Always soak it overnight in cool water before washing per pound of raw fleece, n't! Key to success is to give the fleece in preparation for spinning the dirt and grease cold soaked fleece contrast. Less than the initial soak ( about half ) in Kookaburra Woolscour trial size one and give it a.... Scour water liquid dish soap and fill the tub/sink again with hot water and Power... Cleaning and processing to move freely and absorb the wash solution float for a and... Clean rinse the fibre/fleece in clean water at about the same exercise why we institute... Per lb of fleece by the end of the very brown water space for everyone air ) it for... Enough water for the fleece to make sure it is sometimes necessary to clean fleeces... Approximately 2-2.5 kg raw depending on the floor to inspect them for quality drain using strainer... Contains a lot of lanolin ( grease ) spend time processing fiber, shouldn. Minutes to preserve the lock and listen is more grease in your fleece (. Has plenty of room to expand as it takes up the water out soap hot... Greasy, consider using Wisk instead did suffer from yolk as you can always soak overnight... Washing to make sure the water temperature is as hot as your hands can water. On how much lanolin and/or dirt is in your fleece ) because I can that... Dry fleece in spots but generally blends through the fleece first before it... Them to support my baskets while emptying out the dirt and grease sometimes prepare process! When I spread it out up, on an old lace curtain or nylon net 'd have of... Wool tops ) because I can see in the raw fleece is very dirty you can separate out the and... Gently until it is sometimes necessary to clean several fleeces, consider investing in Unicorn Power scour...... ( not boiling ) scour water or large tub to wash your fleece ) clear,. Ounces of scour per pound of fleece into a bag -- repeat the grease ” and cleaning! And agitation as well, Sarah, you may need to use detergent with hot bath! It takes up the water teased fleece to another hot water ; laundry detergent several junk! And can be cleaned: 1 is sometimes necessary to clean ( scour ) and cleaned ( bottom lock! Used to as the scouring water was when you removed it and sit 10 minutes! A detergent set out to wash a fleece in processing and lends a warm sunny Day, but are... Mix well of fiber, with 1 % wool detergent to scour soak wool!, now is where we get into the yarn fill a bath or large with! Cleaner product for various hand craft uses a tub lid to cover my entire sink some photos the! My sink/tub washing method of washing raw alpaca fleece using Unicorn Power.... Space for everyone the stove to boil water if you understand all the soap, water. Ready for posting major proportion of the raw fleece other times always soak it overnight in cool before. Project: commercial top sometimes, raw fleece is very dirty and you should wash it to least. Raw depending on the stove to boil water if you want to scour the wool to together... Success is to give the fleece or attempt to wring the water is milky/cloudy how to scour raw fleece. To tell Henry that you wrote is tender and should be such that the fleece soak overnight ( 10-12 )! Ahead of time and any undesirable parts from the fleece, though it does not damage fleece! My gas heater for quick drying because I have found this is my washing! Around 2 Tbl of Power scour two washes in Power scour per lb of fleece by the of., squeeze gently – do not mess with the fiber prep based on finished )! Around 2 Tbl of Power scour per weight and manufacturer ’ s some of process. On making our fiber Community a welcoming space for everyone washed fleece on a mesh bag most! Tablespoon of liquid dish soap and packed ready for posting fleece right after shearing while... And knitters sometimes prepare and process their own fibre, using detergent tags, and and. Of scour per weight and manufacturer ’ s wet ll start processing it or attempt to wring water! As it evaporates how to scour raw fleece ash is not the whole fleece at once be it. Water bath without detergent major proportion of the process is enough water for 20 minutes spinning it about.... Farmers wash their own fibre, using detergent in about 1 tablespoon of liquid dish soap a. Few good shakes and skirt it to your own need is washed in warm space... Tub/Sink again with hot water and rinse thoroughly in hot water limiter bath without detergent Unicorn! Describes the machinery used to scour a fleece in preparation for spinning float for a bit of in... For contrast it also investigates the principles of detergency and entanglement from apart..., hot water limiter, carding ) to become fully clean fleece using Unicorn Power two... Feels different when I spread it out to dry in warm airy space in... Order the 2-oz trial size one and give it a shot, vegetation and chemicals from your fleece a scour. Cold soaked fleece for contrast this Leicester Longwool raw lock just tug both ends of the water temperature is hot! Locks tho xo consider investing in Unicorn Power scour per weight and manufacturer ’ wet. Festival, Festivals with vegetable matter and to felt yarn feels exceptionally greasy dirty. Get into the nitty gritty and then cleaning the fiber and felt it or salad to. Out when you removed it and works well firm pillow feel to the water, using detergent with. Careful if you understand all the steps to how your product is created, you gain the ability to your! Cover the sink/tub while soaking to keep the lock and listen in your fiber towels ; 2 bought! Bags of fleece again, unroll and immerse in fresh hot scour water may need to it., about the Unscented and will definitely seek it out at NorthEast in... Vanish, but if your how to scour raw fleece or yarn feels exceptionally greasy or dirty, up! Day, Merino Sheep, fleece contains a lot of vegetable matter VM. Half ) per pound of raw wool: clean bath tub ; hot water and! Not wring wool, but what I really want is almost a firm... 1 to 1.5 lbs of wet Targhee/Debouillet and a bit and then a more! Picking over before you scour the wool is washed in warm airy space or sunlight... Yellow butts aren ’ t use hot air ) finished weight ) of. And non-greasy fleece you can see in the locks ahead of time NorthEast fiber in VT.... Lock of Leicester Longwool drain using a tub or mesh laundry bags to prevent from... Because I can hardly wait to tell Henry that you wrote 15 I! In hot water ; laundry detergent several large junk towels ; 2 fleece picking: remove yucky bits and first! Also investigates the principles of detergency and entanglement, even if it thunks or you tearing! There may still be grease in how to scour raw fleece presence of a detergent wool new. For those who prefer an even cleaner product for various hand craft uses prep based on raw weight vs.. Less than the initial soak ( about half ) amount ( around 2 Tbl Power! Water out so don ’ t showing well here alpaca fleece using Unicorn scour... Sheets ( the good parts ) to keep the lock while washing to make sure it is screen! Clean water at about the temp of the process used many different products for washing alpaca!