Wool is a very popular natural fiber that is gathered from a variety of different animals. The most commonly used wool comes from sheep, but there are many other types of wool that are used in clothing and other types of wool products. Once the fiber has been gathered it is carded, spun and crafted into a fabric that has many uses. Today, we’re going to explore those different types of wool fabrics so that you can be well informed the next time you decide to create a garment from wool fabric.
What Is Wool?
Let’s start with what wool is… Wool is a natural fiber that is derived from animal hair, specifically ovine-like sheep. One major advantage of wool, amongst other fabrics, is that it has evolved throughout thousands of years to provide warmth.
Wool has quite the complex biological structure; scientists have shown that it is impossible to replicate. Wool fibers are unique as they can retain a good percentage of their insulation even when it gets soaked through. And that’s if you can get it soaked, as getting wool soaking wet is a lot easier said than done, due to its relatively good moisture-wicking capability.
Wool fibers also have a thin waxy coating (fatty acids) which gives it its natural moisture-wicking property and acts as an additional layer of protection from bacteria. And, it is this secondary faculty of the waxy coating that provides natural wool with its odor resistance, so you won’t need to wash it as often.
Finally, this unique natural occurring fiber is not a one-trick pony. Wool is generally used to create clothes that keep us warm. However, certain types of woolen fabrics are suitable to work against heat and keep the wearer cool.
When Was Wool First Used?
Wool is most commonly attributed to sheep, but there are in fact other wool ‘varieties’ that come from other animals. However, the origins of wool can be traced back to 10,000 years ago when sheep in Central Asia and the Middle East were first domesticated.
It was in 3500 BCE that people actually started to spin the fiber gathered from sheep, and there now exist thousands of different breeds of sheep. Crazy!
From The Middle East To Europe
Sheep were originally bred for their meat, skin, and milk. However, wool production entered the fold when the Persians saw the value of the sheep’s fur. The earliest recorded use of wool for clothing is dated between 4,000 to 3,000 BCE and it was the Persians who were also the first to trade wool during that period. Not too long after wool started to appear across Europe and Africa.
When introduced to Europe, sheep were primarily used as livestock. By 1,000 BCE, wool production also made its way, with England and Spain being the primary manufacturers of the unique fabric.
Archeologists have also discovered that the Romans built a large wool processing factory in England around 50 CE. While wool has been present in Europe for quite some time, the quality of the wool wasn’t exactly top-tier. So when Spain started importing the ancestors of Merino sheep from Morocco, Europe finally got its hands on some fine luxury wool fabric.
Arrival In America
Sheep landed in America thanks to the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, who brought a shipment during his second visit in 1493. The second shipment of sheep brought by Hernan Cortes arrived from Mexico a couple of decades later. However, throughout the first few centuries, sheep were primarily relegated to livestock in America.
It took a while for sheep to arrive in North America, but they finally did in 1607. Unfortunately, this herd of sheep was primarily used for their meat. It didn’t last long due to the famine sweeping this region. In 1609 the next shipment of sheep arrived, and this time they were sustained. Just three decades later, there were over 100,000 sheep.
The Sheep And Wool Industry Today
Nowadays, the biggest producers and importers of wool are in Australia and China. China produces 386 metric tons of wool annually and is the top fabric producer. Australia is a close second with 382 metric tons. However, Australia mainly imports highly sought-after Merino wool.
How Is Wool Made?
Wool production is quite the complex process and includes large machines and precision. Below I’ll summarize the entire step-by-step process for anyone interested in the process of producing wool!
Shearing
Harvesting the sheep’s hair is the first order of business. One by one, each sheep is sheared to gather the raw wool. As you can imagine, this could be a rather tedious and time-consuming process if there are hundreds (or more!) sheep to shear, especially if the sheep are not cooperative. However, most sheep are already well-trained and know the drill, and gathering the fleece of sheep does get faster the more practice one has.
Scouring
Next up, scouring. This is when the sheared sheep’s wool must be cleaned of dirt and grease. Again, this is another time intensive task that will consume a lot of time, but it is necessary to ensure the quality of the wool.
Sorting
After cleaning the wool, it is time for the segregation process. This needs an experienced eye that knows how to differentiate between high quality and low quality.
Combing
Once the high-quality wool has been sorted, it is time to prepare for the next steps. Combing is the process of removing any tiny knots from the wool fibers.
Carding
Carding is the process that separates the wool fibers individually and helps to remove any impurities that can cause the fibers to tangle or lie parallel to one another. Carding can be done on carding machines or by hand, if only small amounts of wool fibers need carding – this is common for those who like to spin their own wool yarns.
Dyeing
Once the wool fibers have been carded and all impurities and flaws are removed, they are ready to be spun into yarn. This is the best time to dye the natural fibers with color.
Spinning
The final step in making wool is spinning. During this process, the wool fibers are further straightened and spun together to create the yarn, then used to make various wool fabric types. I myself have a spinning wheel (Ashford Traditional, it was a 40th birthday gift) but I have not yet mastered the skill of spinning my own yarn!
What Are The Different Wool Fibers?
We’re aware that most wool is gathered from sheep, but there are various breeds that exist with each breed delivering a different wool type that provides unique properties and unique characteristics. Below are the other fibers from wool-bearing animals that you will encounter in the market.
Alpaca
Alpaca hair (also referred to as alpaca fleece) is a highly versatile fiber that is lightweight, soft, and rather durable. It is used to make a large selection of products, but in terms of clothing it is popular for sweaters and coats. There are also two types of alpaca wool:
- Huacaya
- Suri
Huacaya alpaca wool is thicker, while Suri wool is smoother and has a silkier texture.
Angora (Rabbit)
Angora wool is a popular choice, and is not taken from a breed of sheep but from Angora rabbits. The fur of the Angora rabbit – Angora fibers – are soft and fluffy, and these characteristics are retained when the fibers are spun into a soft wool. As a result, angora wool is ranked relatively high regarding moisture-wicking of any natural fabric.
The downside of Angora wool is that it is rather delicate. You may therefore wish to have it blended with other fibers to improve its durability.
Camel Hair
Camel hair fiber has a stunning golden brown color and is often used to make luxury coats and carpets. It is actually one of the more expensive types of wool. Some variations of camel wool feature blended fibers to keep it somewhat budget-friendly while retaining its signature qualities.
Cashmere
Cashmere is considered to be one of the more luxurious fibers available. Cashmere wool creates a lightweight fabric that also provides a very cozy and soft texture – one of my longest used scarves is a cashmere scarf that was a gift, and despite having a couple of moth holes (drat!) it is still as beautifully soft and snuggly as it was he day I received it.
The main reason for cashmere’s high price can be attributed to the difficulty in getting the cashmere fibers from the undercoat of the cashmere goat.
Not only are Cashmere goats pretty scarce – they’re mostly found in Mongolia and China – but they also produce a small amount of hair per year.
Finally, the Cashmere goat’s hair is not sheared but combed, further increasing the difficulty of harvesting it from the animal.
Llama
Llama wool is the fiber (or fleece) gathered from the coat of llamas, a camelid from South America that has been somewhat domesticated. The wool from llamas is very soft and warm, making it a great wool textile for the winter months.
Melton
Melton is a heavier wool type and is considered the toughest of the bunch. The thick wool fibers of Melton wool translate to increased weight. It is known to have outstanding insulation and water-wicking capability, which makes it an excellent material for making winter clothes and blankets. Melton is in fact the type of wool that is used for the under collar in traditional wool tailoring.
Merino
From the thickest wool type to one of its lightest, Merino wool fabric comes from Merino sheep, a native of Spain. Merino is a fine wool, and is known for its refined and shiny texture, making it ideal for crafting clothes designed for both hot and cold weather. Merino sheep are prominent in New Zealand and Australia.
You may not have seen it but I have a tutorial showing how I turned a merino sweater into a zippered garment, and I have worn this merino sweater throughout the year!
Mohair
Mohair wool is taken from Angora goats and is known for its unique look and excellent insulation, even with its lightweight construction. This type of wool also drapes quite well though I personally find it to be more itchy than other wool types.
Shetland
Sheared from the undercoat of sheep native to Scotland’s Shetland Island, Shetland wool is distinguished by its durable and soft texture. It is a favored choice for knitting and creates fabrics with warmth while keeping itself relatively lightweight. Shetland wool also offers more natural color options than any other sheep breed. Despite its itchiness (to me!) we all know that Shetland wool creates beautiful wool sweaters!
Virgin Wool
Also known as lambswool, this is taken from baby sheep when they are only several months old – that’s right, the sheep’s very first shearing. Due to the wool being taken from young sheep, the fibers are smoother and have a soft feel compared to those that are shorn from adult sheep. As you would imagine, virgin wool is quite expensive as it can only be harvested once per sheep.
Types Of Yarn Made From Wool
Let’s take a quick look at the different types of yarn that can be spun from wool.
Boucle yarn: I’ve covered the fabric above which results from boucle yarn being spun or woven into fabric. The textured loops and curls that are part of boucle yarn are created during the spinning process, and makes for a visually interesting type of yarn.
Cable yarn: yarn that is ‘cabled’ has been plied with a minimum of four singles that are twisted in opposite directions. This gives the cable yarn more structure and strength making it suitable for heavy cable knit sweaters.
Chenille yarn: this type of yarn has a velvety texture made from the short lengths of fiber that are spun into the core.
Plied yarn: a yarn that is plied has been twisted with two or more strands during the spinning process. When plying yarns we can use singles (below) that are the same or different in color. The process of plying results in a thicker yarns which helps to increase strength and balance.
Single yarn: this is the yarn resulting from a single strand of diver that has been spun. It is not plied with other yarns, and this can make it more delicate and less durable. Single ply yarns have a tendency to pill more easily and have a more rustic appearance – certainly my attempts at spinning a single ply do!
Slub yarn: this yarn has thick and thin sections, which are spun into the yarn quite organically, resulting in a gorgeous textured and irregular appearance.
Worsted yarns: made by aligning and combing the fibers in a parallel way before they are spun. By removing the shorter fibers a smoother and more even yarn is created which has less fuzziness to it. Worsted yarns are considered to be more durable.
The above are just a few of the different yarn types that are suitable for wool, and don’t forget that the way that yarn is spun and plied will affect the final appearance and texture of fabric that it is later knitted or woven into!
Types Of Fabrics Made From Wool
With the wool fiber types and the yarns from various spinning methods covered, we can now dig into the types of fabrics that are made from wool, several of which have proven themselves since the Middle Ages to be suitable for clothing.
Batting – while cotton batting is generally the norm, the consensus is that batting made from wool is superior.
Boiled wool – aha, who doesn’t love an itchy yet fabulous boiled wool coat? Boiled wool is created by subjecting wool fabric to heat and moisture, which causes it to shrink and become thicker. It ends up with a dense and textured appearance and is most often used for coats and jackets.
Bouclé – this fabric has a unique look to it with its bobbled texture.
Broadcloth – this fabric is considered to be one of the more rigid and hard-wearing fabrics due to the dense weave used with wool yarn.
Chenille – this wool fabric has a soft velvety texture.
Crepe – the rather crinkled or pebbled texture or wool crepe is created through weaving and finishing process. It’s used for dresses, skirts, and more structured garments.
Felt – a non-woven wool fabric made by matting and pressing wool fibers together. This wool fabric is a mainstay in arts and crafts projects but is also used to make hats such as fedoras.
Flannel – a soft and warm wool fabric with a brushed surface that creates a slightly fuzzy surface; flannel is a comfortable and warm fabric that delivers comfort above all else – who doesn’t love a flannel shirt or flannel pajamas?
Gabardine – this fabric has a distinct ribbed surface on one side and a smooth surface on the other, created from the very tight Twill weave – it is this weave structure that gives wool gabardine a durable and wrinkle resistant finish. Wool gabardine is often used in making suits, coats, trousers, and other outerwear garments.
Herringbone – wool yarn can be used with the herringbone weave structure, which gives the finished fabric its unique skeletal herring fish appearance. Traditionally tailored garments like jackets, coats, and trousers are often made from herringbone.
Lincoln wool – this wool is used for making high-fashion and professional-looking suits. It is one of the more expensive wool fabrics in the market.
Loden – this is a wool fabric vaunted for its high water resistance, making it an ideal material for making high-quality coats.
Melton – a very dense and highly woven fabric made from wool, which is felted to create a very smooth surface. This sturdy wool fabric is used for coats, jackets, military uniforms and in more specific areas of a garment, like the under-collar on a. tailored jacket.
Merino – being very soft and very fine, you’ll generally find that merino fabric is used in its knitted form for clothing types like sweaters, activewear and base layers for those cold weather sporting activities some people enjoy (or just to keep you warm during the harsh winter months, like me!)…
Plaid / Tartan – this fabric features color combinations and specific patterns using signature stripes which are associated with various clans, regions or cultural traditions and as such is considered to be a traditional fabric used throughout Scotland. Wool tartan and plaids are commonly used in kilts, skirts, pants and many other clothing types.
Suiting wool – wool that is created for suiting can range from light weight to heavy weight, and everything in between. Wool suitings are used for suits (obviously), blazers and trousers and with many different variations available in terms of texture and drape too!
Tweed – another well-known and classic woolen fabric, tweed comes in various patterns and provides excellent durability and moisture-wicking properties. It is often used for outerwear garments like jackets and coats, and has a long association with country style. I love a proper tweed garment and am halfway through a wool tweed waistcoat for myself – pattern matched as well!
Wool Jersey – this is a pretty standard knit fabric made from wool, though make sure anything that claims to be wool really is! I have a lovely cashmere jersey that I’ve yet to use. It’s so soft and drapey, but it did cost a small fortune!
As you can see, wool is a natural fiber that is used in diverse ways, and now that you know more about it, you’re in a better position to use the right wool fabric for the next project you plan to make.
Things to remember with wool is that it can be a little itchy for some people, though this does seem to depend on which animal the wool fiber was gathered from. If in doubt, you can always add a lining to make any garment really comfortable to wear throughout the cold winter months.
For me, I’ll be finishing off my lovely wool tweed vest / waistcoat and planning some winter skirts using the wool boucle I have in my stash.