Kent Romney
Breed Study ♪ spinning
Look at this absolute unit of a ram.
History
I should have anticipated studying the hairs of twenty to thirty sheep (or more) would come with such fascinating history. Sheep have been such a cornerstone of economies around the world.
The Kent Romney was developed by crossing Dishley Leicesters with the local sheep in Kent and Sussex—a breed that thrived in the marshy, wet humidity. This happened in the 1800s.
Before that, the wool from Romney marsh was a hot commodity, and subject to smuggling by ‘Owlers’. Various tactics were introduced to dissuade the Owlers, until demand for English wool fell in the 1800s.
Because of their hardiness in humid places, Romneys are now found all over the world—in Australia, New Zealand, and North America, to name a few.
The variety I’m spinning is the Kent Romney, but I’m keen to try others to see the difference.
The wool
Romneys are a medium long wool. The first thing I noticed was just how long the staple length is! I’d never spun something so long, and was admittedly a bit nervous. Of course I also chose now to see if I could go thinner on my spin, and play with using a much faster speed on my wheel to accommodate the tighter twist needed to keep the yarn together.
It was really fun to spin this. The combed top I’m using is commercially prepared by World of Wool, and so it drafts really beautifully. I’ll eventually wade into roving (where the fibers are combed, but not necessarily as stringently aligned as combed top), but NOT TODAY!
Enjoying this study very much.
Before
After
After a wash and dry. So floof!
As much as I fought my wheel on this, I am enjoying spinning the final sample. I want to have a 50g skein of all the breeds to put all next to each other, and then spin the rest into usable fiber. Maybe appropriate for a one-layer-out-from-skin garment. I have over 100g left because I bought 200g, so I will be able to turn the rest of this into a different project someday.
Here’s the final card!
