Homegrown Ryeland Sliver - Pale Grey, 100g

This year we sent most of our Ryeland wool to Halifax Mill for processing into sliver for spinning.  They've done a wonderful job on it, the fibre is beautifully carded, nep-free and full of its natural Ryeland bounce.  

Sliver is made from carded fibre, so this preparation is perfect for longdraw spinning, although it will spin up beautifully from a worsted draw too.  Ryeland wool makes a super bouncy yarn with great elasticity and little tendency to felt.

You'll find a little vegetable matter (VM) in these, as my sheep enjoy their winter hay and the mill washes the fleeces gently so VM isn't always stripped out.  It drops out easily during spinning.  Since the fibre's been gently washed, there's some residual lanoliin in the wool, which results in a smooth spinning experience, the lanolin's easy to wash out after spinning.

This sliver is a natural pale heathered grey colour, from the pale coloured Ryeland ewes in our flock.  We have plenty of this available, so we've put it up in 100g lots.  It would make a wonderful background colour for a knitted colourwork project.