|
Whether you have your own herd of
animals whose fleece you would like to see transformed into
useful products or you already have a market for custom yarn and
processed fibers that you have been doing by hand, Small Farm Fibers
is the answer for your custom fiber processing.
We can process a wide range of
raw fibers and blends of fibers into everything from scoured
wool to finished products. We can do it much more
efficiently than with hand-operated tools, but we do not have
many of the labor-saving devices, nor the thousands of pounds
per hour capacity that large,
traditional mills would have. In recent years there has
been a proliferation of smaller-scale textile mills similar to
ours, each with its own personality, goals, and strong suits.
We encourage you to explore that realm and let us help you with
your projects where we can do you the most good.
Here are a few facts about us
that may help you evaluate us:
-
We are especially skilled with fine
wools like merino and rambouillet, even those under 20 micron
fiber diameter. Our technical competency with these most
difficult wools is demonstrated by our line of fine wool yarns.
-
We process only raw fiber or fiber
that has been scoured in a commercial scouring plant,
-
While we can scour (wash) smaller
segregated lots, we will charge you for a minimum of 9 pounds
scoured. We will quote you a price for scouring based on
the incoming weight.
-
If you choose to process beyond
scouring, we will quote additional prices for opening and/or dehairing
based on the incoming weight of scoured fiber; a price for
carding based on the weight to the carder; for spinning, and finishing based on the weight of
the yarn produced. We must have a minimum of
5 pounds in a single, segregated lot to opening to continue on
to spinning. You may take your product as opened and/or dehaired fiber,
carded fiber, or finished yarn. We will quote you
appropriately.
-
If fiber sorting is needed to
achieve minimum quality of the proposed product, we will bill
you for it by the hour in addition to charges quoted based on
weight.
-
Expect a setup fee for your overall
order and each lot (batch of fiber we can treat as a unit)
smaller than 30 pounds.
-
You may purchase prepared fiber from us or others to blend with
your fleece at the carder. We can also produce custom yarn
for you entirely from commercially pre-prepared fiber.
-
We are committed to helping you make the most of your fiber.
We want you to know what to expect and be an educated consumer
of our services.
If you need to control costs for
your processing:
-
Combine fleeces that are
similar in fiber diameter (fineness) and staple length into
a single lot that we can blend.
-
Send only the best parts of the
fleece for
processing into yarn. This will maximize the value of
your product. Learn what fiber qualities translate
into quality yarn for the ultimate product, be
critical of your fiber stash, and be sure your fiber is
appropriate for the product you want from processing.
-
Have your animals and/or
fleeces fiber tested
to confirm that the fiber will make the kind of product you
expect and to help you combine compatible fleeces.
-
If we will be processing your
fiber beyond the scouring stage sort, sort, sort! Don't
risk having us do it. It's time consuming, it's the
hardest job of all, and we charge appropriately.
-
Be aware of and account for the weight loss in various parts
of the process. Scouring alone can result in losses up
to 40%, depending on the fleece type. If dehairing is
required, there can be significant losses of wool carried
away with the guard hair component.
We are always happy to help you develop the best plan of
action for your fiber. Give us a call.
See
also Evaluate Your Fiber Quality
and How to Skirt a Fleece
|
