Washington County Wool Pool



Future Wool Producer -
Yearling Rambouillet Ram

We spent last weekend at Wild Rose Farm sorting through the fleeces that we won't show, sell, or have made into yarn.  Not every fleece is a show fleece or a hand spinning fleece, so the rest of them go to the wool pool.  The majority of shepherds aren't selling to fiber artists or making yarn, so most of the wool shorn from flocks each year is taken to a "wool pool" to be sold.  The Washington County Co-Operative Wool Growers held their event on Monday (flocks with >125 fleeces) & Tuesday (small flocks with <125 fleeces).  Our fleeces went on Tuesday.
FYI, there's a world wide increase in the price of wool, so we got almost twice as much for our wool in 2011 -vs- 2010.  Example: Fine Staple was $2.20/lb - vs- $1.40/lb last summer.  Not a fortune, but a better price for the fleeces that we won't use otherwise.  Expect to see prices of wool yarns going up across the board out there, even at the (gasp) big box craft stores!  
As I sort the fleeces, I can't help but pull out choice sections of Rambouillet fleeces that are going to the wool pool.  ;)  They get added to the future yarn stash.