Merino sheep were so highly prized during the 18^th century that their export from Spain was considered treason and punishable by death! Their soft, finely crimped wool has great elasticity and insulating properties. With cashmere added for softness, and just enough nylon to add elasticity this is a wonderful fibre for socks. Great for spinning, and a nice bright white fantastic for dyeing with an eye-catching sparkle!

80% superwash Merino, 10% Cashmere, 10% Stellina (bonded nylon/polyester)

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

This product is a “Top” sliver.

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 spin and knit for 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.