Home Farm Wool

At Home Farm Wensleydales, we worked tirelessly with our flock of Wensleydale, Bluefaced Leicester and Lincoln Longwool rare breed sheep for over 12 years.  During that time we significantly increased the strength, health and awareness of the breeds, and we hope this continues with all the small and large flocks throughout the UK that we have helped to both improve and start.

After lambing in 2021 we decided to pass most of our flock to a very well respected and experienced sheep farmer in Devon.  He has a wealth of knowledge that far exceeds our own and we have no doubt the flock will flourish with his care and attention.

By way of explanation, my earliest memories are in my mother’s wool shop and working with fibre has always been my passion. This change allows us to focus more on wool and fibre producing animals, as we are one of the few who truly understand the process from lamb to skein. Just as we helped to lead the way in improving the breed, we are excited to be among the leading producers for those who appreciate the highest quality wool.

The production of yarn from Home Farm Wensleydale flocks will continue,  including fleece from our starter flocks (when available) and producing fabulous new ranges of pure Wensleydale worsted spun wool and combed tops.

We do not buy in from the British Wool Marketing Board because we cannot guarantee the treatment of the animal nor can we identify what is being sold as Wensleydale.   

We do not commission spin, our wool was grown on our farm or comes from starter flocks and smallholdings where we have placed starter or larger flocks - so we know where it comes from and we know our sheep live another year to grow another fleece!
  
Although increasingly expensive, our wool is all processed in the UK.

Each order is selected and packaged by hand to ensure the utmost love and care is delivered, from these wonderful sheep to your doorstep.  

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'There Are Over 900 Breeds of Sheep, But None Quite as Beautiful as the Wensleydale'.

The Wensleydale Breed

...   Sustainability – natural, renewable, biodegradable.

Originating in North Yorkshire, early in the 19th century, the breed stems from a cross of the long extinct longwool breed from the River Tees region (where I’m from) and a single, outstanding, ram from Leicester (near Home Farm), called 'Bluecap'.

During its earliest years, the breed was developed through hardy rams and hill ewes, with the intention being to produce a high quality, valuable fleece.  

 ‘No woolman who has ever seen the sheep or wool will ever forget it’. Kenneth Ponting, Sheep of the World

Bluefaced Leicesters

...   Supporting British Farming and UK manufacturing
The Bluefaced Leicester is descended from the Border Leicester with some Wensleydale blood added to give it a distinctive quality. For traditional sheep farmers, this breed is one of the most important new breeds to evolve in the late 19th and 20th century. The fleece is finer than the Wensleydale with a lower micron count.

Lincoln Longwools

The Lincoln Longwool is one of the most historically important breeds of sheep in Britain in the last 200 years. Since the 16th century Lincolnshire had a tradition of exporting wool to Europe. Robert Bakewell’s improvement of the neighbouring Leicester gave a huge impetus to the refinement and development of Lincoln sheep. Throughout the 19th century the breed was pre-eminent amongst wool sheep, and was exported in large numbers to Australia, New Zealand and Argentina to help boost their wool crop.

Uses for the fleece of Black Lincoln Longwool sheep

The wool was principally intended to be used in carpets or wall hangings and its lustrous surface made it excellent for dyeing. Unfortunately this also meant that black wool was extremely undesirable and black lambs were either killed at birth or when ready for the table. It was only with the appearance of a market for hand spinners in the 1960’s that some breeders kept a few of the coloured sheep. In the mid 1980’s the breed association agreed to register “Black Lincolns” in a separate section. This decision has never been accepted by main breeders who intensely dislike the black version.

The description ‘black’ is not very helpful as the wool is only really black on the head and rump, which is the worst quality wool on the sheep. Generally a mid-grey is the most common colour from the fleece.

Technical information about the fleece

  • Staple length 15-35cm
  • Bradford count 36-40 cm
  • Micron measurement 45-41
  • Weight 7-10 Kgs

Looking after our Flocks

Our biggest priority is the kind and fair treatment of the animals that do the hard work and the environment.  


 

Our Wool

...   100% genuinely grown and processed in the UK 
Home Farm Wensleydale Wool provide 100% pure Wensleydale wool for knitting, crochet, felting - perfect for any garment.
Sometimes complemented with Bluefaced Leicester, Mohair or Alpaca, the Wensleydale wool is spun from finest fleeces to produce seriously luxurious yarns.  Our beautiful wools are washed and spun in Yorkshire - so the entire product is traceable and genuine.
We also supply an exclusive range of incredible wool spun by hand. This exquisite wool is lovingly spun in Kent and Wales by very experienced and talented spinners and is a perfect compliment for any hand knitted garment or spoil yourself with a hat or some gloves.

Thank you

When you buy wool from Home Farm Wensleydale Wool you can be confident that every ball and skein has been produced with the utmost love and care, not only for its quality and beauty but also for our great concern for animal welfare.

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