I tried more samples of the fibers Cathy and I had ordered from World of Wool back in February.

I chose six of the fibers to try.  Three dark, three light. I used two layers in each of them.

Its not obvious from the fiber layout, but there were some big differences in the feel of each.

From the top left to right:

Black Welsh                            White South American with Rose Fiber embellishment

Light Gray Swaldale               White Faced Woodland

Gray Massam                            White South Down Top

The Black Welsh was coarse to the touch. White South American  was very soft with a longer staple. The Swaledale was soft and variegated.   The White Faced Woodland was soft. The Grey Massam was soft as roving.  The White South Down top was soft and had some black fibers running through it.

After felting to a prefelt stage:

The Black Welsh was softer  and lighter than expected.  The White South American was soft, and more compacted than the others.  It felt more like merino. The Rose fiber melted right into it.

The Swaledale was bristly to the touch, but light and only slightly spongy. It wasn’t as variegated once felted. The Woodland was the thickest of the samples slightly coarse and very spongy.

The Massam was flatter and firmer than all of the samples and coarse but had soft finish, very hairy. The South Down Top  was spongy and not as soft as the White South American. This was the only one to show any shrinkage during the process.

I haven’t used any of these fibers in a project yet, but am curious if any of you have and what for.  I purposely made prefelt so I could use it later and not waste the fiber.

I’m currently traveling, so if I don’t respond immediately please be patient.