Page 51 - Knit Now - Issue 112 (January 2020)

FEATURE

Fair Isle Herdwick
The native breed of the central and western
Lake District and regarded as the hardiest
of the British sheep breeds, Herdwicks are
born with a black eece that becomes grey
with age and this wool is used primarily
used in carpets and rugs or rugged
knitwear. www.herdwick-sheep.com

Grading
The process of grading eeces to ensure
By using a variety of differently-coloured
only the best-quality eece gets the
ne yarns a knitter is able to create the
traditional, beautiful and intricate patterns highest price is essential to ensuring
originating from the Fair Isle. Fair Isle quality. Fleeces are graded into ‘types’
rather than speci c breeds in order
gained global popularity in the 1920s when
to provide the right eece for the right
Prince Edward VIII rst began to sport Fair
product. www.britishwool.org.uk
Isle jumpers in the public eye.
Jacob
Popular with
spinners, and lling
a special niche in
the market due
to its naturally
coloured wool,
this is a eece
used in a wide
range of textiles
Indie dyers including garments
and carpets. The
unique colour
Whether from a dye studio or even a home
of this sheep’s
kitchen, indie dyers bring the best out of eece makes every
yarn with inventive and ingenious colourways garment special.
and dyeing techniques. Quality, fun and a
www.site.
sense of personality are all abound in the
jacobsheepsociety.
wonderful world of the indie dyer! We love
com
these shades from Eden Cottage Yarns.
www.edencottageyarns.co.uk
Kerry Hill Llama

A sturdy and adaptable sheep, its wool is perfect for
upholstery and furnishing fabric. With a short, dense eece
and distinctive head markings these sheep are mostly
found in Wales and Central England. Fleece from Kerry Hill/
Bluefaced Leicester cross sheep is used for WYS’s Re:Treat
chunky yarn. www.kerryhillsheepsociety.com

With an inner coat that is the perfect softness for garments and
handicrafts, a llama’s outer coat is rough and used mostly for rugs,
wall hangings and even ropes. Closely related to the alpaca, their
eeces are less uffy than their long-necked cousins.
www.knitnowmag.co.uk 51