Sheepy Chatter:

An unrestrained amount of sheep geekery awaits you in this episode of Tog and Thel intermission. Get yourself a cuppa, and if you’re feeling particularly scholarly, a notepad and pencil, make sure to have wool of fiber at arms reach, and lets settle in to some Primitive Sheep 101.

Tons of chatter about the biology of wool fibers, how we get the fiber we use to knit with, the unique characteristics that set apart the primitives breeds from the modern domestics, and why the Icelandic sheep continues to fascinate and shine bright amongst all its sheepy peers.

Knitting, Yarn and Fiber Inspiration Chatter:

* Breeds Included in the northern short-tail family:

Icelandic

Faroese

Finnish Landrace

Old Norwegian Spaelsau

Swedish Goth

Shetland/Orkney

* Differences in characteristics between kemp, true wool and heterotype fiber:

Characteristic

True Wool

Kemp

Heterotype

(hair)

Structure

Epidermis

Cortex

Epidermis

Cortex

Medulla

Epidermis

Cortex

Medulla

Length

Long

Short to 1 ½ inch

Long

Diameter

Same for entire length

Tapers at root and tip

Same for entire length

Transparency

Semi-transparent

Opaque

Semi-opaque

Crimp

Yes

No, has wave

Long, open crimp

Surface

Prominent scales

Scales

Few scales set close to fiber

Elasticity

Good

Poor

Fair

Root

None

Present

None

* Secondary to Primary (S/P) follicle ratio in various northern short-tail breeds :

Faroese 4:1

Finnish landrace 4:5

Gotland 6:2

Old Norwegian Spaelsau landrace 4:0

Shetland & Orkney Island 5:5

For a daily of dose of my Instagram, come say hello.

* Theme music for this podcast is “Iceland Journey Has Begun” by Lobo Loco, and has been provided by the FreeMusicArchive at http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Lobo_Loco/Iceland/

* Tog and Thel podcast is available on Itunes, Google Podcasts, all podcatchers and Stitcher Radio.

 

Lets sit, and chat, and play with some wool.

A restful, soulful break from the main show, as we take some time to let big ideas settle into us, and allow fiber to unfold and dance before us.

Today’s episode us mostly about Icelandic fleeces…about carding them, feeling them, spinning them, smelling them…and yes, playing.

 

 

For a daily of dose of my Instagram, come say hello.

* Theme music for this podcast is “Iceland Journey Has Begun” by Lobo Loco, and has been provided by the FreeMusicArchive at http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Lobo_Loco/Iceland/

* Tog and Thel podcast is available on Itunes, Google Podcasts, all podcatchers and Stitcher Radio. 

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