BS: Buffalo Wool

Subject: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: MMario
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 04:22 PM

in the "signs of spring" thread someone mentioned the neioghbors buffalo was shedding. That got me to thinking about exotic wools and yarns. (it's a fiber thing - you have to be a fiberholic to understand)

The undercoat of the bison is suppossed to make an excellent yarn

The under coat of Musk oxen is qiviut - which makes an incredible luxurious yarn

I've seen specialty wools from various old-time breeds of sheep and goats. Angora rabbits can be plucked for yarn.

And I know the undercoat of some breeds of dogs can be spun. The three I KNOW work are samoyed, husky and pomeranian.

Any others breeds or species out there people know of?

I've often wondered about the undercoat from long haired cats - but never had access to one.

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: AllisonA(Animaterra)
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 05:04 PM

I've twice seen skeins of Australian possum blended with merino- left my checkbook at home both times! It was so soft and lovely.

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: CarolC
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 06:06 PM

Some people spin the undercoat of the Newfoundland dog into yarn. I think I've heard of poodle fur yarn, too, but I'm not sure of that one. I used to spin yarn a bit. Nothing exotic though. Just regular old sheep wool. But because of my spinning experience, I find myself twisting all kinds of strange things into strands. Like the paper tubes that drinking straws come in and things like that. It's a difficult habit to break. (Not that I've really tried ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: Sorcha
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 06:26 PM

Great Pyrennnese (sp?), Kuvaz, anything with a fairly long, soft coat. Briard undercoat would be nice, but it would take forever to get enough of it to do anything.

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: Amos
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 07:35 PM

Cats don't usually co-operate with shearing efforts, MM! It's hard enough to get them to shampoo! Maybe the answer is...FURBALLS!


A

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: Ebbie
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 07:53 PM

ugh, Amos. Would you volunteer to comb out furballs?

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: MarkS
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 09:05 PM

Best thing would be to cross a long haired cat with a snake. You get a very furry critter with LONG strands of soft hair which sheds naturally every few months.

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 10:14 PM

You don't have to cross most cats with anything to get a very furry critter with LONG strands of soft hair which sheds naturally ....

We've got the hairballs to prove it.

When they're small, you can call them "dust bunnies," but when they get big enough to growl at you when you walk past, we call them several other things.

And we only have three cats.

John

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 12 Mar 03 - 11:12 PM

I met a woman who makes very realistic miniature animals (wolves, foxes, bobcats etc.) to sell at craft fairs. Instead of using rabbit skins like most folks do, she shears her goats in the summer and makes "pelts" by gluing the sheared fur to pieces of cloth. Kind of an "organic fake fur".

Bruce

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: MarkS
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 12:28 AM

My fiance is in the pet grooming business. Anybody want some dog or cat hair, send me a pm and let me know. I should be able to get some to you by the basketfull!

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: open mike
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 04:43 AM

i got a llama thin king i would spin it's hair
then i found out that they spit at you if they
do not like what you are doing--like trying to
brush their hair!

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: Rapparee
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 06:55 AM

My friend Pat says that you can use horsehair, which you can pick out of the currycomb.

Whales are mammals, mammals have hair -- what about whalewool?

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: MMario
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 08:01 AM

leading us back to the 'fresh-water whaling' thread and songs. Evidently whales have a couple of bristly hairs under their chin and that's about it. too bad actually.

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: MMario
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 10:42 AM

if I understand right from some LLama breeders I've talked to - you "pluck" llamas when they are shedding - or else you shear them. Combing doesn't do it, no, no, no!

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: Mr Red
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 04:50 PM

FWIW the rope (one inch thick) used to drape hand-laid linen paper made at Wookey Hole in Somerset UK was traditionally made from cow hair because it contains no oils or so little that it didn't mark the paper. Wookey (pronounced Wokey) is a cave system and paper mill museum now. When they cleared the mill they chucked-out all these old manky ropes thinking they had gone brown through mould. They soon learn3d to regret their stupidity - no-one makes cow hair rope these days. But you could use it to Mooooove things ..... I'll get my coat (of cow hide)......

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: RangerSteve
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 06:35 PM

It's an interesting thought, but the buffalo ranch is surrounded by an electrified fence, I'd have to watch out for the droppings, and the buffalo are mean as hell.

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 06:42 PM

About every ten years or so one of the local "society gals" discovers a spinning wheel in an antique shop, carts it home, and starts trying to figure out what to do with it.

We invariably, then, get a "local news" story in the rag about the "lovely" things she's been making ---- always with the "spare hair" from her poodle.

Maybe it's just a nut thing that goes with owning a poodle - but mine's a mini so he doesn't have all that much hair to spare. It does seem to be the only odd hair that makes it into the "local" pages.

We do have numerous people keeping llamas in the near vicinity, usually in small herds; but I don't know that they even collect - much less weave - the hair. I think their main incentive is making baby llamas for others who want a small herd.

However, wheat weaving is big around here.

John

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: catspaw49
Date: 13 Mar 03 - 09:20 PM

Mario, I like the idea of weaving with Pomeranian......frankly, I'd suggest weaving the entire dog not just the hair.......you'd be doing the world a great service!

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: Kim C
Date: 14 Mar 03 - 10:09 AM

I love to spin alpaca on my little drop spindle. It makes a lovely, delicate, very warm yarn.

I saved lots of hair from my dog Zenith, who died last year. She was a Norwegian Elkhound, and they have a nice fat undercoat. The fiber isn't very long, though, so I have plans to comb it into some wool, and spin that.

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: GUEST,Ely
Date: 15 Mar 03 - 02:33 AM

Any spitz breed will work for dog hair; I've got an American Eskimo, which is basically a 30-pound Pomeranian. I sweep an ungodly amount hair out from under my fridge each week (anybody know of a hair fund for Shih-Tzus undergoing chemotherapy? I've got donations).

I had a friend who used to spin her Airedale's undercoat. I don't know how well it worked, though (I don't know if Airedale undercoats are comparable to Eskies').

Subject: RE: BS: Buffalo Wool
From: GUEST
Date: 15 Mar 03 - 10:21 AM

I've spun bear fur. Anyone want to volunteer to get some more for me?