Making The Wool

Shearing is one of the most important events in the shepherd's calendar. Each summer, our skilled shearer carefully removes the fleece that has grown over the past year, ensuring our sheep stay comfortable and healthy whilst providing us with beautiful wool.  

Shearing is usually done in two parts:  I clip some of them with the intention of doing them all.  Then I always remember how hard it is, with the result that the whole flock is  sheared by our kind and lovely shearer, who specialises in smaller flocks and gets to know our sheep.  

Why We Shear

Shearing is essential for the wellbeing of our flock. As temperatures rise in late spring and summer, removing the heavy fleece helps prevent overheating and keeps the sheep comfortable.

Those of you who follow the Blog on these pages will know how relieved we are to get the fleeces off our sheep.  The warm, wet weather can pose a threat to sheep health when they are in full fleece, risking possible incidents of fly-strike.

The Shearing Process

Our shearing takes place in June and July, when the weather is warm and dry. Each sheep is handled with care and expertise. A skilled shearer can remove an entire fleece in just a few minutes, working methodically to ensure the sheep's comfort and safety whilst keeping the fleece intact.

The freshly shorn fleece is carefully rolled and sorted by quality. The finest wool comes from the sheep's shoulders and sides.  The idea is that you end up with something that looks like this:  

From Fleece to Fibre

The upshot is that we end up with nice clean sheep and a LOT of raw fleece.  We tidy the fleeces (without washing them) to remove clarts and vegetable matter,  and send them off to the Mill for processing into finished yarn for knitting, crochet or weaving.  

It's then scoured, carded and spun into yarn.  Throughout this journey, we can maintain the natural qualities that make Lammermuir wool special: its softness, warmth, durability, and beautiful texture...