Pindrafted Roving from the Barnston Island Flock, price per 100 gram bump
At long last, more beautiful pindrafted roving from the Barnston Island flock! Barnston Island is a small island in the Fraser River, located between Surrey and Pitt Meadows, BC. Shepherds Susan and John raise these beautiful sheep as a fibre flock, and we lucky crafters are the benefactors of all of that hard work!
These sheep live on a beautiful small farm with lush pasture and excellent attention to their wool. They are mainly ewes, although there is a wether or two among them, and they are only bred when the shepherds want to preserve the genetics of a sheep that grows exceptional wool. That means that all of the sheep's energy goes into producing wool, resulting in strong, soft, lustrous fleeces.
This flock is high welfare and low impact, and the Barnston Island flock manages their flock to sequester carbon and increase the biodiversity of their pasture. Plus, these sheep love to give hugs!
The fibre was processed into pindrafted roving at Wellington Fibres in Elora, Ontario.
MEET THE SHEEP:
Heather, Gotland x Romney x: Heather is sired by Oliver, a purebred Gotland ram, and is out of own of my heart-sheep, Blacky. This fleece is a dark, slightly warmer-than-neutral grey, with tiny silver threads throughout. The hand is silky and soft, and it will make a spectacular yarn!
Mocha Rose, Gotland x Romney x: This is Mocha Rose's first shearing, and as such, her wool is just a delight. It's almost black, aside from the fine silver fibres that are threaded throughout. A note: some skin flakes/dandruff can be seen in this fibre due to how dark it is - it's not scurf*, but I want buyers to be aware - the flakes fall out easily, but they may not be to everyone's comfort level. However, the colour and the softness certainly make up for it, and this "flaw" is reflected in the price.
Miss Vicki, BFL x Gotland: Miss Vicki is quite a character! She is one of the friendliest sheep of the Barnston Island flock (although, Magpie certainly gives her a run for her money in the friendly department!) and wants to know exactly what is going on! This batch of her wool is lustrous, silky, and quite soft! Staple length: 6.5 cm/2.5 inches
Moonlight, CVM x: Moonlight's fleece is very soft, so if you're looking for something that will be next-to-skin comfortable for most, this fleece is one to consider! It shimmers and has a lovely crimp, although due to Moonlight's CVM heritage, it does have a shorter staple length than some of the other sheep in this flock. The sample locks shown are quite cool in colour, but the fleece does have patches of darker and warmer tones as a testament to Moonlight's CVM heritage. This fibre will make a wonderful fine-weight knitting yarn! Staple length: 7.5 cm/3 inches
Isla, Gotland x: Isla's fleece is a very pale warm grey, and has a nice, uniform crimp that will lend it to a variety of spinning styles. It will be particularly lovely for weaving, but will also make a strong, shiny knitting yarn that will get softer and shinier with wear.
Staple length: 9 cm/3.5 inches
Tulip, CVM x Gotland x: If you're looking for a fibre that will make a great knitting yarn, this really fits the bill. Tulip's fleece has a great staple length, lots of crimp, and colour that ranges from white through to medium grey. Her CVM heritage is revealed in the fantastic crimp, and a yarn made from her fleece will have lots of bounce and loft - it's a great fibre for fine yarn spinning. Tulip is Dilly's lamb! Staple length: 10-12 cm/4-4.5 inches
The Good Yarns, Gotland - this fibre combines Little Miss Good Yarn and Little Mister Good Yarn's fleeces. They're both Gotland, and the resulting fibre is shiny, a lovely neutral grey, and very silky. Staple length: 9-10 cm/3.5-4 inches
Elizabeth and Peaseblossom, Gotland x Romney x Charollais and Gotland x Romney - a soft oatmeal with dark grey fibres throughout. The hand is silky, friendly, and will yield a lovely knitting yarn. Staple length: 10-11 cm/4-4.25 inches
Dilly, Gotland x Romney: Dilly's fleece is crimpy, shiny, and full of bounce! It'll be a very versatile fibre to work with due to its staple length, and will make excellent weaving or knitting yarn. Staple length: 9-10 cm/3.5-4 inches
Peaseblossom, Gotland x Romney x: Peaseblossom is the result of the work Catherine and Susan have done together. She is the lamb of Muffin, who has an unusually fine fleece for a sheep of mostly Romney genetics. Catherine wanted to preserve those genetics, so Muffin was bred to Oliver, a purebred Gotland ram, and adorable little Peaseblossom was the result! This is her lamb fleece, and while it does show the typical Gotland crimp structure, it's also quite soft and very shiny. There are some grey fibres throughout Peaseblossom's fleece, although it was hard to capture that in the photograph. But, the resulting yarn from this fibre will be mostly white. It will, however, take dye wonderfully! Staple length: 8-9 cm/3.25-3.5 inches
POGG and Twyla, Gotland - this fibre is a lovely neutral grey and is strong and shiny. While it may not be suitable for those with sensitive skin, yarn spun from this fibre will be shiny and strong, and will only get better with wear! A great fibre for weaving yarn as well. Staple length: 10 cm/4inches
* the difference is, in terms of spinability, that dandruff falls out, and scurf is glued to the fibre.