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The first step in preparing wool for the spinning wheel is to make sure you have a good fleece. Before you buy, look for second cuttings. These are caused when the shear does not come close enough to the skin and they take a “second cut” to get the rest of the wool off. They will look like little bits mixed into the fleece. Find a fleece that has a staple length of about 2 ½ inches for a good quality yarn. The wool should be greasy but not caked in grease. Be sure it is not to dry. Take a staple of the wool and try to tear it or pull it apart. If it breaks look for another fleece. That is an indication the animal did not have adequate protein at some point in the year and makes for brittle wool.
Once you have the fleece you will need to get the right kind of soap. The best I have found is to go with one of the commercial wool washes. Other wise, you can use a mild soap without harsh detergents, like Dawn or Woollite. The most delicate part of preparing a fleece is in the washing process. If you combine heat and agitation you will felt the wool. Once this is done there is no way to reverse the process and the fleece can be used for felt or thrown out. All the wash is for is to loosen up the wool and rinse off some of the lanolin and dirt. Do not try to get all the grass and twigs out. These will come out in the combing or carding process.
To wash the fleece, fill the bathtub half way with hot water. Do not add cold to the tap, you want the water as hot as you can make it. Add the soap and gently lay the fleece on the water. It should slowly sink as it absorbs the water. If it does not go all the way down, find some kind of screen or use a colander to gently push it the rest of the way into the water. Let it soak for about twenty minutes. Placing your hand or a colander over the drain, open it and let the water drain out. You can gently push the fleece to one end as it drains so that the agitation of adding more water does not affect the fleece. Once it is fully drained refill the tub with water, no soap, and let soak for another twenty minutes. Drain again and do one or two more rinses depending on how much dirt drains out in the second rinse. Do not wash a second time or you risk removing to much lanolin and the wool will be harder to spin.
Once your fleece is washed place it in a mesh bag and spin in your washing machines spin cycle to remove as much water as possible. If you don’t have a washer, skip this step. Lay the fleece out side to dry on a screen. Place another screen on top. As the wool dries it will become fluffy and can easily blow away. Leave it out until it is completely dry. Be sure to cover it with a tarp or bring it inside if it rains.
Now that your fleece is clean you are ready to start combing or carding it.
Wool combs are lethal looking tools. They look like two hair brushes with nails instead of bristles. One comb is secured to the table and a hand full of wool is worked onto the spikes. The object is to comb the wool off the first comb with the second one. Once most of the wool is transferred, whatever is left on the first comb is discarded and the combs are switched and the process repeated until the spinner feels the wool is as straight as possible. At this point a diz is used to draw the wool through and form the roving, similar to the long lengths of wool you can get at commercial establishments.
Now you are ready for the wheel. Good luck, and happy spinning.
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