First Fleece

DS#3 texted me on Friday night. He was visiting our neighbors who own a petting farm. His text said, "Barb wants to know if you want a fleece." Me: "What kind?" Him: "Jacob." Me: "YEEEESSS PLEEAASE!" So Saturday morning I went by and met Barb and she gave me a recently cut fleece.

After consulting the process as found in "Start Spinning", I decided that I should proceed.

Step 1 - Dumping the fleece out of the bag and skirting.


The parts of the fleece were a little jumbled, making the skirting process a little more difficult.

Right or wrong, I went through the fleece in sections, taking away the dirty lumps, and leaving the soft, cleaner stuff in a separate pile.


Step 2: Washing the darned stuff.

There were two hot water & detergent washes, followed by a hot water and white vinegar rinse, followed by a plain old hot water rinse. I was nervous, afraid that the fleece might felt.....that would've been very sad. :(


Step 3: Putting it out to dry.

After the final rinse, I tipped the clothes basket up on its end to drain our as much water as possible.

I found some old towels, and rolled the fleece up inside, gently pressing the excess water out. There was not a lot left.

Next, I spread it out on our screened porch table and turned on the ceiling fan.


Maybe it will be dry by Tuesday. Janice has reminded me that she has a drum carder, so I'll beg to borrow it, and after a quick tutorial, will begin the process of turning the fleece into roving, all ready to be spun up! Excitement! Kind of! ;)