Merino wool is very soft with a closely spaced crimp. You can spin a fine woolen yarn using the long draw or a worsted yarn using a short draw. Merino is ideal for super fine knitting, crochet and lacework.

Ashford Merino sliver is a 100% New Zealand product with wool from pasture-fed sheep from high country sheep stations. The farmers take great pride in the quality of their wool and the high standard of animal husbandry; the sheep are well cared for and are not mulesed. After the sheep are shorn, on the farm, the wool is carefully skirted and checked. Only wool that is sound, clean with good fibre length, bulk and colour is selected. It is sent to a boutique New Zealand mill to be dyed, carded and combed.

It is scoured (washed) using an environmentally-friendly, biodegradable detergent . The wool is then dried and dyed. The dyes comply with the strict EU regulations and garments made from the sliver can be certified under the Oeko-Tex Standard 100. This standard is the most widely known standard for certification of ecologically-safe clothing. The fibre is then gently opened and conditioned. Carding machines align the fibres and remove any foreign matter. It is then gilled and combed

22μ thick; 65-105mm staple

Our wool comes from non-mulesed hogget sheep (18-20 month old).

This product is a “Top” sliver. All sliver may contain some vegetable matter.

Over the years we've found there are regional differences in the use of terms like "sliver", "roving" or "top" and we tend to use the label provided by the supplier (which may not exactly match what a different supplier may label a similar fibre). Often in modern times these terms are used interchangeably, but historically they've had different meanings.

The way we (Birkeland Bros) use the terms, "sliver" would be the 'ropey' gathering of fibre coming off a carding machine.

If a slight twist is introduced to the sliver to give it strength, it is frequently referred to as a "roving" and tends to be finer than a sliver; for example, a “pencil roving” is never more than a pencil-width in thickness. Some mills might also sell one-ply yarns (like Buffalo yarn) as a roving, since without plying that slight twist is what keeps it from pulling apart easily.

If sliver is put through a pin-draft assembly for additional straightening and removal of short fibres, we refer to it as a "Top" sliver. These tend to be more expensive than a regular sliver because of the extra processing, and tends to be less fluffy than a top. Dyed sliver is almost invariably a "top" sliver: why bother dyeing something that isn't a top?!

100g of sliver is typically sufficient to wet felt a pair of slippers/2-3 dryer balls, or spin and knit a pair of socks; 5-7 lbs of sliver is typically sufficient to knit or crochet a "Giganto" style blanket, depending on the complexity and tightness of your pattern (cabling requires more sliver to accomplish).

Batts will typically measure 24 inches by 40 inches (61 cm by 102 cm) rolled out, with the thickness varying by weight selected. Batts can be easily separated into layers depending on need. Due to larger dimensions/volume, shipping costs will be higher for batts. Shipping costs for batt quantities greater than 3 lbs (1400g) may be calculated very high but we will always do our best to package efficiently and will refund any postal savings.