The Field Guide to Fleece: 100 Sheep Breeds & How to Use Their Fibers

Which wool is right for your project, and what might you do with that big bag of luscious fleece that catches your eye at the fiber festival? The answers to your questions are always at your fingertips in this portable reference to the fleece characteristics of 100 sheep breeds.

For each breed, you'll find:

The best way to prepare the fleece for spinning

The natural colors of the fleece and how well it takes dyes

Best uses for the wool

Fleece weights, staple lengths, and fiber diameters

With this compact, portable reference in hand, crafters can quickly and easily look up any of 100 sheep breeds, the characteristics of their fleece, and the kinds of projects for which their fleece is best suited. Each breed profile includes a photo of the animal and information about its origin and conservation status, as well as the weight, staple length, fiber diameter, and natural colors of its fleece. This is a great primer for beginners, and a handy guide for anyone who loves working with fleece!

Carol Ekarius is the co-author of The Fleece & Fiber Sourcebook and the author of several books, including Storey’s Guide to Raising Sheep (with Paula Simmons), Small-Scale Livestock Farming, Storey’s Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds, and  Storey’s Illustrated Breed Guide to Sheep, Goats, Cattle, and Pigs. She lives in the mountains of Colorado where her four-legged and winged family keeps her busy. 

Deborah Robson is co-author of The Fleece & Fiber Sourcebook and Knitting in the Old Way. She is a former editor of both Shuttle, Spindle & Dyepot and Spin-Off magazine, and she is currently the editor and publisher of Nomad Press, which publishes books on traditional and ethnic knitting and spinning. Robson is also an artist, working in textiles, printmaking, and oils. She lives in Colorado with her daughter.

A Love Affair with Wool

American Miniature Cheviot

Arcotts: Canadian, Outaouais, and Rideau

Badger Face Welsh Mountain

Balwen Welsh Mountain

Beulah Speckled Face

Black Welsh Mountain

Bleu du Maine

Bluefaced Leicester

Bond

Border Leicester

Boreray

Brecknock Hill Cheviot

British Milk Sheep

California Red

Cambridge

Castlemilk Moorit

Charollais

Cheviot

Clun Forest

Colbred

Columbia

Coopworth

Cormo

Corriedale

Cotswold

Dalesbred

Dartmoor Greyface

Dartmoor Whiteface

Debouillet

DeLaine Merino

Derbyshire Gritstone

Devon and Cornwall Longwool

Devon Closewool

Dorset Down

Dorset Horn

Dorset Poll (Polled Dorset)

East Friesian

Est a Laine Merino

Exmoor Horn

Faroese

Finnsheep

Galway

Gotland

Gromark

Gulf Coast Native

Gute or Gutefar

Hampshire Down

Hebridean

Herdwick

Hill Radnor

Hog Island

Icelandic

Ile-de-France

Jacob

Karakul, American

Kerry Hill

Leicester Longwool

Lincoln Longwool

Llanwenog

Lleyn

Lonk

Manx Loaghtan

Merino

Montadale

Navajo Churro

Norfolk Horn

North Country Cheviot

North Ronaldsay

Ouessant

Oxford Down

Pelssau

Perendale

Polwarth

Polypay

Portland

Rambouillet

Romanov

Romeldale and CVM

Romney

Rouge de l'Ouest

Rough Fell

Rya

Ryeland

Santa Cruz

Scottish Blackface

Shetland

Shropshire

Soay

Southdown

Spaelsau (New)

Spaelsau (Old)

Stansborough Grey

Suffolk

Swaledale

Targhee

Teeswater

Texel

Tunis, American

Warhill

Welsh Hill Speckled Face

Welsh Mountain and South Wales Mountain

Wensleydale

Whitefaced Woodland

Zwartbles

In Case You're Curious

Glossary

Credits

Index