This year, BLU will sponsor a $50 cash award to the first place BFL fleece at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival. Details will be in the MS&W festival catalog and entry form. So if you have been considering entering a fleece in the contest, this is the year to do it!
Here is the MS&W website with details on entry, and the entry form.
http://sheepandwool.org/festival/fleece-show-sale/
Tag: fiber
OFFF Show Report
Several BLU members enjoyed the Oregon Flock & Fiber Festival this past weekend in Canby, OR. Linda Campanario had the First Place Yearling Ewe in the White Wool Class, with Terra Mia Addie.
Terra Mia Caleb won Reserve Champion ram lamb in the white wool category for his breeder, Kat Bierkens.
Youth member Rhiannon Curley also exhibited. Both Kat and Karen Szewc of Liongate had vendor booths during the festival.
Liongate
TerraMia
People’s Choice Award!
Winning the People’s Choice award in the Black Sheep Gathering fiber arts competition for the third year in a row was BLU board member Karen Szewc’s entry in the Felting:humanoid or critter category.
New article in Spin Off magazine
BLU member and board member Carol Densmore has an article in latest edition of Spin Off.
Here is a link to the entire magazine.
Spin-Off Magazine-Fall-2016
Using Bluefaced Leicester Fiber: Demonstration at National Show
BFL Blending
As part of the National Bluefaced Leicester Show at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival, the Bluefaced Leicester Union will be giving a free demonstration on carding and combing Bluefaced Leicester wool. They will demonstrate the best way to work with beautiful, purly BFL locks and how best to manage the small lock structure through the carding and combing process. Hand cards, combs, and a hackle will be used to show you how to transform your BFL fleece into a preparation ready for spinning or felting. Then you’re welcome to try it yourself. Extra cards and combs will be available. They will also have Bluefaced Leicester fleece for you to try out.
BFL fleeces shown at Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival
Submitted by Margie Smith, BLU member
1st place BFL fleece in 2014 MS&W fleece show
The fleeces shown, are from Marlindale Farm in New Oxford, PA. Margie
and Lynn Smith have been running Marlindale Farm since 1990 having moved
from Emmitsburg, MD to New Oxford in 2004. With support from BFL
breeders (giving us our foundation stock for BFL sheep) as well as our
sheep shearer, Emily Chamelin, and that of fellow Maryland Sheep
Breeders’ members, we started placing rather well in the Fleece Show at
Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in 2011. We’ve had the 1st place BFL
title for the past 3 years. We mostly have purebred BFL now, but have
crossbred BFL x BL with stunning results.
The 2nd place fleece in 2015. Marlindale also had the 1st place fleece
Our fleeces sell from $45/ lb to $95/lb. We keep the sheep covered with Rocky Payne’s sheep sheets
which has kept the fleeces wonderfully clean.
A couple of us, in
conjunction with Rocky are try to develop a sheet sheet with a
“turtleneck” to preserve and keep clean the lower neck and shoulders. We
average about 1.5 pounds of “waste” from that area, which is just too
good to lose each year. Ours is a learning experience that is taking us
quite a few tries to get right!!
5th National BFL Show August 16th in Allegan, MI
The BLU- sponsored dinner will be on SATURDAY evening, August 16th. We are arranging for a room, but will order off the menu for simplicity’s sake. The BLU dinner will be held at the London Grill in Kalamazoo (london-grill.com)
The London Grill is not far from the host hotel, Fairfield Inn Kalamazoo West (special rate of $99 per night if we meet minimum of 10 rooms reserved) 269-353-6400; indicate you are reserving with the Bluefaced Leicester Union group.
As far as presentations are concerned, we have an offer of several presentations from a fiber expert, Christine Kurt, who can expertly expound on any number of fiber topics, be it spinning, weaving, dying, felting, lace-making, color combinations, etc. Perhaps we can use this forum to collect ideas as to what people would be interested in. We envision the presentations taking place either after the show on Saturday or before 2 pm on Sunday, As to non-fiber related presentations, suggestions are welcome.
Sheep Show Judge: Dave Smith from Indiana.
There will be separate black and white shows. The shows will be on Saturday morning. The entry forms can be downloaded from the BLU site, bflsheep.com. The deadline is July 1, with late fees added to entries postmarked after the 15th.
We are actively seeking sponsorships for the sponsored awards classes. List of classes is as follows:
Classes for the 2014 National BFL Show – Michigan Fiber Festival
Whites and black will be shown separately, in two different shows.
Individual and pair classes. Each exhibitor is allowed two entries per class (except in pair classes, where one pair equals one entry)
1. Aged ewes (over 2 years old)
2. Pair of aged ewes
3. Yearling ewes
4. Pair of yearling ewes
5. Ewe lambs
6. Pair of ewe lambs
Champion and reserve ewe *
7. Aged rams
8. Yearling rams
9. Ram lambs
10. Pair of ram lambs
Champion and reserve ram*
Group and special classes: each exhibitor allowed one entry per class.
11. Pen of three lambs / young flock (2 ewe lambs, 1 ram lamb)*
12. Get of sire (any three sheep sired by the same ram)*
13. Flock (2 ewe lambs, 2 yearling ewes, 1 ram)*
14. Best head, ram (white only)*
15. Best head, ewe (white only)*
16. Best fleece*
*sponsored award class (winners will receive an award in addition to a ribbon)
Micron Testing Project Results
Submitted by Robina Koenig @ Tumble Creek Farm, Bend, Oregon
Happy New Year and I hope everyone had a wonderful 2013 as we look forward to 2014.
As promised, the Micron Testing Project, approved and paid for by the board, was completed within 2013 with the goal of finding the average micron count for the North American Bluefaced Leicester flock. All of our current material reflects UK information. Due to the differences in staple length of the samples from each farm represented here, the Micron Profile graph was not taken into consideration.
A total of 90 samples were submitted from 9 farms for this project. I would like to personally thank those that participated. Your individual reports will be mailed to you shortly. My summary is at the end of these definitions.
Following is a definition of the terms used and are directly from the American Wool Council, a division of the American Sheep Industry Association.
The Average Fiber Diameter (AFD) is the thickness of the wool sample measured in microns. A micron is 1 millionth of a meter or 1/25,400 inches. Average diameter is necessary because a wool fiber does not grow at a uniform thickness on the sheep, and fibers growing next to each other will grow at different rates. It is not uncommon to see fibers with diameters that are 15 microns different (or more) within a single sample. (See Table 1)
Information on AFD and the corresponding USDA wool grade is presented in Table 1. The US is the only country in the world that has an actual fiber diameter measurement in microns associated with its Wool Grades. The USDA wool grade also takes variability of fiber diameter into consideration. Countries such as Australia and New Zealand have only started reporting variability of fiber diameter, something that the US has done for the past 50 years.
Standard Deviation (SD) is a measure of the variation of wool fiber diameter. Statistically speaking, 2/3 of the fibers measured fall with +/- one SD of the Average Fiber Diameter. For example—a sample with an AFD of 22.5 micron and an SD of 4.5 micron would have 2/3’s of the fibers measured between 18 and 27 micron. The other 1/3 of the fibers would be finer than 18 micron or coarser than 27 micron. The smaller the SD, the closer the fibers are to the Average Fiber Diameter, resulting in less variation among the individual fiber diameters for the entire sample.
Because lack of uniformity affects processing performance, the USDA wool grades have a maximum allowable SD for each wool grade (Table 1). If the SD is greater than the maximum allowed, the wool sample is downgraded to the next lower USDA grade. Also, coarser wool tends to be more variable; therefore, the SD allowance increases as the fiber diameter increases.
Coefficient of Variation (CV%) is also a measure of the variability of the sample, but is expressed as a percentage and is relative to the mean or Average Fiber Diameter. The mathematical equation is: CV% = SD/AFD x 100. This measurement is particularly useful because it allows one to compare wools of different fiber diameters. Ideally, the CV% should be 20% or less on an individual animal sample.
Coarse Edge Micron (CEM) provides information on how coarse the top 5% of the fibers are in relationship to the AFD. The smaller the CEM, the more uniform the wool sample. Samples with a high CEM tend to have a “tail” on the Histogram that shows a trailing off of fiber diameter, rather than the desired high peaked, bell shape curve.
Comfort Factor (CF%) is the percentage of fibers equal to or less than 30 micron. It has beeen documented that fibers greater than 30 micron in diameter are rigid and do not bend when they come in contact with skin. Fibers over 30 micron are responsible for the prickly feeling of wool and can cause skin irritation, leading people to erroneously state they are allergic to wool. Wool that is going to be made into garments designed to be worn next to the skin should have a comfort factor of 95% or greater. Garments made with a Comfort Factor of +95% do not feel scrtchy or cause skin irritations.
A Histogram is a graph that shows the individual fiber diameter measurements of a sample. The fiber diameter of each fiber measurement is put into “bars” on the chart, usually in one-micron groups. The higher the height of the “bar” the more fibers have been measured in that micron group. The Histogram is a quick and easy way to view the variability of fiber diameter within a sample.
*The Micron Profile graphs the variation of the fiber diameter along the staple during the growing season. Individual wool fibers are measured every 5 millimeters along the fiber. The left side corresponds to the fiber tip; right side fiber base (closest to the skin). In addition, minimum & maximum micron, the finest point from the tip (FPFT) are reported. This information is useful to determine how environment differences are affecting the Average Fiber Diameter during the growing season. Drastic changes in fiber diameter often result in weak or tender wool that breaks easily when stretched or processed. With the micron profile information, growers can make management decisions that benefit wool growth throughout the year. A “flat line” indicates more uniform wool grown throughout the year.
*The participating farms will see this graph on their individual reports.
NOTE: The OFDA2000 measures individual fibers along the staple length and uses this information to calculate the average fiber diameter of the entire wool sample. The results reported will be different than a side sample submitted to a laboratory for analysis. The laboratory technique used for measuring a side sample (boh OFDA100 or Sirolan Laserscan) uses a 2mm snippet from the base of the wool sample for conducting the fiber diameter test. With a laboratory test, you are getting an AFD report as close to the time of sampling as possible.
TABLE 1
Following is my brief summary of the BFL wool micron test results from Texas A&M, sponsored by BLU in 2013.
Our US flock has used UK genetics via LAI for the past several years. The resulting offspring have been extensively used for breeding as well, increasing the influence of the original elite UK sires and widening our North American Bluefaced Leicester gene pool. One way the results of this infusion of new blood can be evaluated is in our fleeces. While qualities such as handle, crimp and softness are somewhat subjective, micron diameter is measurable data that can be reported precisely and used as a selection tool for the future. Climate plays a part in our fleeces as well, as do feeds grown and fed across the country. All of these must be considered when evaluating and reading micron reports.
Nine North American farms participated in our free micron testing project. There were 90 samples submitted, and it should be noted that there were differing numbers of sheep tested from each farm. The average micron diameter of all animals as a group 27.7. The lowest farm average was 23.9 and the highest was 30.2. Most of the samples were from ewes and only a few rams that I could guess from some names given. I did not notice a reportable difference between them.
I would like to offer a personal comment on the Comfort Factor definition. Bluefaced Leicester wool is not typically thought of as being a ‘close to the skin’ or ‘baby underwear’ wool such as Rambouillet would be. Please keep in mind that the italicized comment in the definition is heard often; however, I wear my BFL in comfort and with pride.
Happy New Year to All. It has been my pleasure to work on this project and I hope you will seek to do your own micron testing of your flock if you were unable to participate.
“Bleatings” from Oregon
Submitted by Robina Koenig, Tumble Creek Farm
Another Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival is long past and winter is setting in here on the high desert. Fond memories and plans for 2013 shows, projects for Christmas on the knitting needles, the ewes and rams getting friendly, and finishing up the yardwork for winter occupy the main activities now. But getting ready for the last show of my season was busy and fun.
OFFF, as it is known, is set in a charming older fairgrounds with large trees shading the grassy central lawn. Vendors cover this lawn with their tents and awnings of all sizes and shapes, not to mention the colors that flow from under them. This is mainly a vendor show now, it seems to me, but the animals are plentiful. The two sheep shows run simultaneously under cover behind the barn with the goats out front in a smaller enclosed ring. I did not show this year which is a first for me. Instead, I chose to be with my four ram lambs and vendor booth in the barn, a busy place to be. Plenty of Bluefaced Leicester information was available and being the only breeder this year I was occupied answering several questions. Callie arrived Saturday afternoon, not wanting to miss this show.
Sunday afternoon brought two young men from lands far, far away, Jared Lloyd(CO) and Garrett Ramsay(MN). Never enough time to visit but good to see both of them again, twice now in the same year! We spent the last hour of the show talking sheep (really?) and comparing/critiquing my four rams from different bloodlines.
Good weather, good friends, good fun! Hope to see you there next year!
MidOhio Fiber Fair
BFL fiber was well represented at the recent MidOhio Fiber Fair, held in Newark, OH. Breeders Anne Bisdorf and Lisa Rodenfels had adjoining booths at the show. Anne had raw fleeces and natural rovings; while Lisa’s booth featured natural white and dyed BFL yarn and dyed locks in a rainbow of colors.
Here is Anne’s very attractively displayed booth.