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Bailey's
White Cloud, MI
231-689-9902
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Fiber Facts Page
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What is skirting?
Skirting, usually done at the time of shearing, is the process of removing all the "icky" parts of the fleece. This includes areas near the rear and back belly and inside of the back legs. Some folks use this term to also include looking over the fleece for vegetable matter and coarse hairs.
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Why is skirting important?
A good skirting job will ensure you get the maximum quality out of your fleece with the least amount of loss. Taking the time to remove urine stains, vegetable matter, burrs, matts, etc., from the fleece not only saves in shipping costs, but is one of the most important aspects of fiber processing. A good skirted fleece will always be worth more than a poorly skirted fleece. In addition, the better the skirting, typically the faster the turn around time for processing as the processor is able to devote time solely to the task of washing/carding. Lastly, the better the fleece is skirted, the better the end product-roving, yarn, batts, etc., will be.
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I thought washing and carding removed vegetable matter?
No. Washing removes dirt, oils, and lanolin. Carding aligns the fibers in the same direction to prepare for spinning, batting, or felting. Carding will remove some vegetable matter, but by no means all-it is more likely to break it up into smaller bits than anything else. The rule of thumb is to always remember that if you send in a fleece for processing that has a lot of vegetable matter, most likely you will get quite a bit of that back in your processed fleece.
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What are 2nds and 3rds?
These terms are usually used with Alpaca or Llama fleeces, indicating poorer quality parts of the fleece-namely the neck and legs. These parts of the fleece are going to be of varying lengths with some very short lengths and some will have coarse hairs. 2nds and 3rds should be processed separately from the blanket and will most likely need thorough blending. Some people prefer to set these aside for felting projects.
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Some of my fleeces have coarse hairs. Should I process the fleeces with these in it?
No. These coarse hairs are either guard hairs or, in the event of some animal types, just sections of coarser hair that are simply a part of the fleece (usually seen in 2nds and 3rds with Alpacas, Llamas, and even Angora goats). These should be removed before processing either by hand or by being dehaired (if a Pygora goat or possibly, llama fleece).
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What is scouring?
Scouring is the term used to describe washing a fleece. Extremely hot water is necessary to eliminate dirt, oils, and lanolin as well as dirt.
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What is VM?
VM is an abbreviation that stands for "vegetable matter".
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Have more questions? Please do not hesitate to give us an
email or call us at 231-689-9902!
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