Cattle Cait
Well-known member
Alright, I have a couple of gallon bags of the stuff from my two woolers. Do I have to clean it or anything before it's spun?
Prepping Wool
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yes ,, you have to clean it first..
DogCatMom
Well-known member
How "dirty" is it? Just vegetable matter (VM), small bits of plants? Or is it pretty clean already?
If it's already pretty clean, spin it up. You'll want to wash the plied yarn later anyway to set the twist, so unless the Angora is messy to the point of being difficult to spin due to VM, body oil, ah...poo parts, or whatever, I'd say go ahead and spin. Wash later.
YMMV.
If it's already pretty clean, spin it up. You'll want to wash the plied yarn later anyway to set the twist, so unless the Angora is messy to the point of being difficult to spin due to VM, body oil, ah...poo parts, or whatever, I'd say go ahead and spin. Wash later.
YMMV.
Agreed with dog cat mom. I groom my rabbits BEFORE their weekly run. It may seem contradictory, but that means the wool I harvest is clean. When they are done running, then I pick out the big pieces of leaves, twigs, etc. before they go back in the cage, and Iet them take care of the rest themselves. By next week, they are nice and clean again. Almost nothing to pick out while spinning.
I just grab a small handful of wool ( called a cloud ) and start drafting/spinning. You can card the fiber before hand, but I think that since the fiber has very small scales and doesn't 'grab' itself as well as sheep, its harder to spin when its all well aligned.
I just grab a small handful of wool ( called a cloud ) and start drafting/spinning. You can card the fiber before hand, but I think that since the fiber has very small scales and doesn't 'grab' itself as well as sheep, its harder to spin when its all well aligned.
skysthelimit
Well-known member
I don't clean mine. I don't even wash the sheep wool unless it's very dirty. I prefer to spin in the grease, makes for an easy spin up. Of course Angora does not have grease. I don't card it either, I spin from the cloud. The Angoras are blown out before I take the wool, so no VM or dust. .
If you do wash it, be careful, and avoid agitation. It will felt quickly.
If you do wash it, be careful, and avoid agitation. It will felt quickly.
Cattle Cait
Well-known member
No vegetable matter, no poop, nothing. They don't run around so it seems very clean as it is, and I brush them out twice weekly. (Is that too much?)
Brushing depends on the breed and the the rabbit. Some are great, easy keepers, and some are not. It depends on the undercoat to guard hair ratio, and how much, often the rabbit molts. My French are fairly easy keepers. I only have to groom once a week when their not molting, and I groom twice a week when they are molting until I can get them all plucked out.
After a week when its time to groom again, some of my rabbits (the ones with more guard hair) look like they were just groomed, and some ( the ones with more undercoat) have little pills all over and usually a mat starting by their butt, or behind their ears. It just depends.
After a week when its time to groom again, some of my rabbits (the ones with more guard hair) look like they were just groomed, and some ( the ones with more undercoat) have little pills all over and usually a mat starting by their butt, or behind their ears. It just depends.
