Breed Specific Yarns

Being a handspinner, I have a special affection for yarns created from a specific breed of sheep.  Deepen your knowledge of our sheep friends by working with these wonderful yarns.  I am listing only manufactured yarns, so consequently, many breeds are not represented here.  You can always go to Etsy.com for handspun yarns.  There you will find a wider variety of breed specific yarns  offered.   I suggest Clara Parkes' book The Knitters Book of Woolfor more information on the various breeds of sheep out there.   Let me know if you find any commercially spun breed-specific yarns not listed here.

In the UK:

• Blacker Yarns

Breed specific yarns for Arans and Ganseys and more!

• British Breeds

Wensleydale, Blueface Leicester, Suffolk, Herdwick, Jacob, Manx Loaghtan, Swaledale, Wensleydale, and traditional guernsey yarn in 11 colors!  This is the yarn formerly known as Creskeld that I used to carry when I had my online store.

• Garthenor Organic Pure Wool

This company is located in Wales. I have heard from a knitter friend that their service is excellent and the yarns are lovely.  They carry both fleece and yarns.  The breeds they carry are: Balwen, Black Mountain Welsh, Blue Face Leicester, Cotswold, Castlemilk Moorit, Grey Faced Dartmoor, Hebridean, Herdwick, Jacob, Leicester Longwool, Manx Loghtan, Poll Dorset, Portland, Ryeland, Colored Ryeland, Shetland, and Shetland Cheviot.  The yarn page is here.

• Hebridean Isles Trading Company

You can purchase yarn (Hebridean and Blackface), fleeces, and knitted garments here.  Knitting classes are also available for all levels.  Here is their email address: Hebrideanisles@aol.co.uk

• Iriss of Penzance carries British Breeds yarns

• Webpage of Stockists of British Wool Yarn–many breeds are listed here

In the US:

• Flying Fibers has Wensleydale Longwool in yummy colors. They are located in PA but you can call them:  717.898.8020.

• Friends of Wool (MI) carries British Breeds yarns.  Call:  (616) 395-WOOL.

• Solitude Wool (VA) Lovely website, beautiful yarns: Targhee, Romney, Tunis, Corriedale, Shropshire, Karakul, Icelandic, Leicester, Suffolk/Dorset and more!

• Stitchuary is a US website that has many yarns of specific wool breeds (and other fibers) made by local, small farms.

The following sites offer breed specific yarns.  I have divided them into categories: Fine, Medium, Down, Long, and Dual (Primitive) fleece qualities.

FINE WOOLS

•CVM               Yolo Wool mills  (US)

• Cormo           Elsa Wool Company (US) Worsted and woolen yarns in natural shades

• Merino           Morehouse merino (US) and  Mostly Merino (US)  Some mohair added-luscious!

• Polwarth       Wendy Dennis Handspinning Wools (Australia) Worsted spun 4 and 8 ply Polwarth yarns

• Rambouillet   Marr Haven (US), Sincere Sheep (US)

MEDIUM WOOLS

• California Red          California Red  Sunrise Haven Farm (US)

• Corriedale                Bear Farn Yarns (US)

• Tunis                        Tamarack Tunis (US)

DOWN WOOLS

• Cheviot                    American Miniature Cheviot Sheep (US)

• Clun Forest             Local Harvest (US),  Timberwood Farm Products (US), and Cheery Creek Farm

• Dorset                     RenaissanceDyeing,com (France)

• Ryeland                   GreatBritishYarns.co.uk (UK)

• Suffolk                    British Breeds (UK)

LONG WOOLS

• Blueface Leicester      British Breeds (UK)

• Cotswold                    Nistock Farm (NY)

• Leicester Longwool   Row House Farm (VA)

• Perendale                  Curran Hill Ranch (CA)

• Romney                     Alder Brook Farm (CT)

• Wensleydale              British Breeds (UK)

                                 Bellwether Wool Company (OR)

DUAL COATED/PRIMITIVE BREEDS

These are sheep breeds which still retain both a wool and a hair.  They are less soft but very hardy, long-wearing yarns.

• Icelandic                  Schoolhouse Press (WI)  light weight Lopi and Plotulopi- the traditional unspun Lopi yarn sold in "cakes" as well as Nordicstore.net (Reykjavik, Iceland)  Traditional Plotulopi

• Jacob                       British Breeds

• Navajo Churro         Deep Creek Yarns and  Mountain Niche Farm

• Shetland                  Jamieson's Spindrift (WA)

Jamieson & Smith (UK)   Yarn colors

Harrisville Designs, (NH)