What do you think?
Rate this book
The Fleece & Fiber Sourcebook: More Than 200 Fibers, from Animal to Spun Yarn
This one-of-a-kind photographic encyclopedia features more than 200 animals and the fibers they produce. It covers almost every sheep breed in the world — from the longwool breeds of the United Kingdom to the Tasmanian merino, the Navajo churro, the northern European Faroese, and dozens and dozens more. It also includes goats, camelids (such as alpacas, llamas, and vicunas), bison, horses, musk oxen, rabbits, and even dogs. Each entry includes photographs of the featured animal; samples of its raw fleece, its cleaned fleece, and yarn spun from the fleece; and samples of the yarn knit and woven. You’ll find everything you want to know about each animal and its fiber, including the fiber’s color, density, strength, and staple length, and recommendations for processing and using it. This is the essential reference no fiber-lover can be without.
873 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 30, 2011
145 people are currently reading
532 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
April 5, 2016
It took me months to skim through this & I can't say I retained much of it save that it's a great reference on various fleeces & fibers. It's broken up into types, usually by animal & then breed. Each sort has a good, descriptive blurb about the animal & the fiber. It's fun as a coffee table book & certainly helped me figure out which fleeces to even look at.
August 6, 2011
What an amazing book!! If there was ever anything you wanted to know about fiber or fleece - anything about wool - this is the book in which to find it! Written in an easy-to-read format with lots of side-bars with interesting facts, I never seem to want to put it down. This is a must-have for anyone who works with fiber - either the production of or in any kind of craft or hobby.
February 25, 2012
Not done yet, but can already tell it's 5 stars. Brilliantly thorough survey of sheep breeds and fleece and fiber characteristics across the spectrum of animal fibers. If you spin, knit or weave....buy it.
January 22, 2012
Okay, working on getting this book categorized correctly. I'm the author. Yes, I think it's five-stars good, although I was going for ten and ran out of time!
January 1, 2025
This is an amazing book! Deborah Robson has given all fiber enthusiasts an indispensable reference work. There are about 1400 sheep breeds world-wide, and a number of other animals, such as goats, angora rabbits, yaks, alpacas, and other animals that provide fiber humans use in various forms, such as textiles, stuffing, insulation, and other uses. They vary in substantial ways in thickness, soft or scratchy, length, crimp, etc. For the spinner, knitter, or weaver learning about these characteristics gives one the ability to choose the perfect wool for any given project. Reading the histories of these breeds also gives one a reminder of how important they were and are all over the world for thousands of years, not only in the production of textiles, but for meat, milk, and leather, etc. Deborah Robson has done us all a great service by giving us the ability to make educated choices in the wools we buy.
August 3, 2020
The Fleece & Fiber Sourcebook is my go to book for facts and information regarding varieties of wool fleece. I process and spin many types of raw fleece, and this book is a "must have". The breeds are easy to find, and the information is reliable. The book helps guide the spinner/knitter to the correct kind of fleece for every project. The information also aids spinners in processing and creating the right yarn for a specific project. With all the varieties of sheep in the world, this guide takes the worry out of picking a fleece.
July 5, 2019
This book is incredible. I'm in love. It is packed full of detailed information and color photo profiles of different types of fiber animals and the fiber they produce. Everything from a huge selection of sheep to camelids, dogs & cats, horses, rabbits, ect. A must have for anyone interested in fiber arts or fiber animals.
March 27, 2019
I read non-fiction before sleeping. This is set up with a few pages per source, just enough to occupy my running thoughts. There is a picture of the lock, spun fiber and knitted swatch. Very accessible writing with helpful descriptions.
May 25, 2021
Amazing! Wish I could know more about other breeds in other parts of the world as well. The feral breeds were astonishing and the number of breeds that have very low numbers and need conservation help gave me new thoughts that I generally have mostly about plants.
February 1, 2022
This is a must have reference book for anyone that truly wants to understand fiber and yarn for their spinning, knitting, weaving, etc. It is a book to keep handy for quick looks as you try new to you fibers.
October 25, 2018
Absolutely the best guide out there for breed specific wool! Great information on the sheep, the fleece, knitting and spinning. Gorgeous pictures. It's the one book I NEED for my spinning.
June 27, 2019
An essential reference book for anyone working with wool fiber, especially textile artists
July 24, 2022
A fabulous resource! I do wish that plant fibers had been covered here as well, though.
September 7, 2022
This is a great resource for knitters as well as spinners.
February 15, 2023
Breaking my "no 5 stars" rule for this one - absolutely perfect blend of vast amounts of information, encouragement, common sense (don't go plucking wool off a bison!), and inspiration.
June 25, 2024
Lovely, informative, and humorous.
February 13, 2025
Informative collection of fibers and their sheep from around the world, a must-have for spinners and knitters.
November 29, 2025
Even though I don't spin, the fiber information is really useful for me as a knitter, especially with my interest in rare and single breed yarn.
May 15, 2012
This book is an amazing book! It is huge! It cover everything you need to know about all the different fleeces and fibers you can spin on a spinning wheel into yarns, threads, and more. I believe the author named this book what they did today because if she were to name it Spinning, most of you would associate it with bicycles today! Nope. She is referring to the old-fashioned Spinning Wheel. This book is a must-read book and is so educational. You will learn what our ancestors did before there were stores where we could just purchase wool and other fiber items off the shelf.
Yes, spinning wool and other fibers involves a lot of work, but when you have the finished product, it is divine!
I have my late mother's spinning wheel. Yes, she got heavily into spinning. On that spinning wheel, there is a long tail of wool she spun. I also inherited a lot of bags of wool. Unfortunately, I have now found out I am allergic to it and cannot even touch it! So I keep the spinning wheel as a remembrance of my mother spinning, and will have to find people who are interested in the bags and bags of wool she has. I had gone on many a trips with her to purchase the wool from different farmers. Believe it or not, this craft is very active, and wool and other fibers from animals are very sought after, even today. These farms are very close to where I live! I was so surprised!
There is a good certain monotony to spinning. It gives you a lot of time to just get lost in the art of the project, or to pray, or to think about life in general, or whatever your certain thing to do would be while doing it. Spinning involves the whole body. You use your foot to make the wheel spin around, and you use both hands to craft the right amount of fiber into what you are trying to make. The more fiber you use, the thicker the resulting yarn or threads will turn out. I always liked to watch my mom spin and see the different looks on her face, and try to guess what she could be thinking about. I honestly think she enjoyed the overall experience.
I cannot begin to tell you everything that is covered in this book. I sure had fun reading it. I should have done the review immediately after I finished the book, and now I am sorry I did not, but, I can tell you it is a fleece and fiber lover's dream come true! I had a little difficulty writing the review because it was so close to my mother's passing, that I am just now able to write this review. I didn't really catch on to exactly what this book was about, nor did I think it would bother me to read it when I did, but it did, especially after finding out it is all about Spinning. Now the book has expired from NetGalley, so I don't have it to refer back to it. I am giving you what I remember from the book.
This book talks about the different fleeces and fibers available from the many different animals, from sheep, to rabbits, and many more! OH! The animal on the cover of the book, on the lower left hand corner! I cannot think of the name of that animal! Yes! It's fibers are wanted as well! Can you believe it? I was shocked when I found that out! There are many farms with those animals on them, too.
The author gets into talking about cleaning the different fibers, to the brushes used to brush them, and many more of the different tools needed for the different techniques needed to use these fleeces and fibers, etc.
The author takes us into spinning these items as well. She shows us how to do it, gives us suggestions and more.
For anyone interested in Spinning, this is THE book to have!
Even if you might be interested in learning what it is about, even how it works, it's worth checking out at the library if you don't want to invest in the Spinning Wheel, or don't know if it's for you. This is "the" book for fleeces and fibers. You will enjoy it immensely!
I received this book for FREE from NetGalley, through their Book Reviewers Program in exchange to read this book and write a review about it. It is NOT required for this review to be either positive or negative, but, of my own honest opinion. “Free” means I was NOT provided with ANY MONIES to read this book nor to write this review, but to enjoy the pure pleasure of reading it. I am disclosing this information in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa...
Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
Yes, spinning wool and other fibers involves a lot of work, but when you have the finished product, it is divine!
I have my late mother's spinning wheel. Yes, she got heavily into spinning. On that spinning wheel, there is a long tail of wool she spun. I also inherited a lot of bags of wool. Unfortunately, I have now found out I am allergic to it and cannot even touch it! So I keep the spinning wheel as a remembrance of my mother spinning, and will have to find people who are interested in the bags and bags of wool she has. I had gone on many a trips with her to purchase the wool from different farmers. Believe it or not, this craft is very active, and wool and other fibers from animals are very sought after, even today. These farms are very close to where I live! I was so surprised!
There is a good certain monotony to spinning. It gives you a lot of time to just get lost in the art of the project, or to pray, or to think about life in general, or whatever your certain thing to do would be while doing it. Spinning involves the whole body. You use your foot to make the wheel spin around, and you use both hands to craft the right amount of fiber into what you are trying to make. The more fiber you use, the thicker the resulting yarn or threads will turn out. I always liked to watch my mom spin and see the different looks on her face, and try to guess what she could be thinking about. I honestly think she enjoyed the overall experience.
I cannot begin to tell you everything that is covered in this book. I sure had fun reading it. I should have done the review immediately after I finished the book, and now I am sorry I did not, but, I can tell you it is a fleece and fiber lover's dream come true! I had a little difficulty writing the review because it was so close to my mother's passing, that I am just now able to write this review. I didn't really catch on to exactly what this book was about, nor did I think it would bother me to read it when I did, but it did, especially after finding out it is all about Spinning. Now the book has expired from NetGalley, so I don't have it to refer back to it. I am giving you what I remember from the book.
This book talks about the different fleeces and fibers available from the many different animals, from sheep, to rabbits, and many more! OH! The animal on the cover of the book, on the lower left hand corner! I cannot think of the name of that animal! Yes! It's fibers are wanted as well! Can you believe it? I was shocked when I found that out! There are many farms with those animals on them, too.
The author gets into talking about cleaning the different fibers, to the brushes used to brush them, and many more of the different tools needed for the different techniques needed to use these fleeces and fibers, etc.
The author takes us into spinning these items as well. She shows us how to do it, gives us suggestions and more.
For anyone interested in Spinning, this is THE book to have!
Even if you might be interested in learning what it is about, even how it works, it's worth checking out at the library if you don't want to invest in the Spinning Wheel, or don't know if it's for you. This is "the" book for fleeces and fibers. You will enjoy it immensely!
I received this book for FREE from NetGalley, through their Book Reviewers Program in exchange to read this book and write a review about it. It is NOT required for this review to be either positive or negative, but, of my own honest opinion. “Free” means I was NOT provided with ANY MONIES to read this book nor to write this review, but to enjoy the pure pleasure of reading it. I am disclosing this information in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa...
Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
March 19, 2022
This book was given to me as a gift and I loved reading it! It is filled with beautiful photos of different species of wool-producing species, as well as their fleeces / fibers in raw, cleaned, spun, and knitted states. I am allergic to sheep's wool but I enjoyed reading about the different breeds of sheep so much that I almost ordered samples of several different fleeces just to see if perhaps my body would allow me to work with them. (I may still do that one day.) I loved that the camelids, goats, rabbits and other fiber animals were also included.
The stories of the different sheep breeds and other animals were fascinating and I especially loved reading about the at-risk and scarce species.
This seems to be a well-researched labor of love that must have taken so much time to compile. I'd recommend it for anyone interested in the fiber arts.
The stories of the different sheep breeds and other animals were fascinating and I especially loved reading about the at-risk and scarce species.
This seems to be a well-researched labor of love that must have taken so much time to compile. I'd recommend it for anyone interested in the fiber arts.
November 11, 2012
This is a quality resource that has been detrimental on my spending cash. I started spinning with a drop spindle and watched Deborah Robson's free mini class called Know Your Wool on the Craftsy website. I had to get this book. The uninitiated have no idea about the varieties of fleece and fibers that one can spin into yarn.
Common and exotic sounding names fill the pages and I'm beginning to sound like an expert in my need to collect some different varieties. As much as I lust for qiviut, it will be some time until I get my hands of this fine fiber. Each entry is very complete with animal information, sidebars, and photos. I like that the writers included a photo with each entry showing the raw and cleaned fleece or fiber along with yarn samples and knitted, woven or crocheted pieces. Ms. Robson and Ms. Ekarius provide information for dyeing, fiber prep for spinning, characteristics of the yarn and best uses for the yarn.
The book has a sewn binding so I expect it to last a long time and I expect it to be a resource that I will check often.
Common and exotic sounding names fill the pages and I'm beginning to sound like an expert in my need to collect some different varieties. As much as I lust for qiviut, it will be some time until I get my hands of this fine fiber. Each entry is very complete with animal information, sidebars, and photos. I like that the writers included a photo with each entry showing the raw and cleaned fleece or fiber along with yarn samples and knitted, woven or crocheted pieces. Ms. Robson and Ms. Ekarius provide information for dyeing, fiber prep for spinning, characteristics of the yarn and best uses for the yarn.
The book has a sewn binding so I expect it to last a long time and I expect it to be a resource that I will check often.
August 16, 2011
What a wonderful resource! This book covers everything you need to know about the behaviors, care and preparation of many sheep breeds and also includes other fiber animals. The authors researched each fiber so well. There's been so many discussions on ravelry on how to prep alpaca and llama fleeces - most wrong! These authors are absolutely correct (from my experience) on how to prepare the fiber and it's uses. This is a book for anyone that deals with fiber: spinner, weaver, the knitter, crocheter and felter. If you're not sure whether to card or comb, they have that covered as well. This is such a valuable resource and I doubt I'll ever lend my copy out for fear I'll never get it back. An absolute must for the fiber lover's library.
April 26, 2013
5 stars as a reference book.
This book is incredible. Everything you could ever need to know about sheep breeds and types of fibers (as well as any other animal that you could possibly spin fiber from). Hundreds of kinds of sheep, plus rabbits and alpacas and even yaks. It's awesome. I've already used it several times this week while researching sheep breeds of fleeces I'm interested in buying.
I can't fathom the amount of work that went into researching this book. It's amazing. :) I basically read it cover-to-cover (skimming certain parts), because there was all sorts of interesting information in sidebars and such.
This book is incredible. Everything you could ever need to know about sheep breeds and types of fibers (as well as any other animal that you could possibly spin fiber from). Hundreds of kinds of sheep, plus rabbits and alpacas and even yaks. It's awesome. I've already used it several times this week while researching sheep breeds of fleeces I'm interested in buying.
I can't fathom the amount of work that went into researching this book. It's amazing. :) I basically read it cover-to-cover (skimming certain parts), because there was all sorts of interesting information in sidebars and such.
June 6, 2013
Other than actual religious tomes, this book is my bible. It lives on my nightstand so I always have quick access to it. For anyone who wants to understand more about animal fiber and its uses in hand production of yarn and textiles, this volume is the definitive work. The sections on various breeds of sheep, which comprise the bulk of the book, are outstanding in expounding upon not only the history of each breed, but also each breed's role in history, as well as the unique characteristics of each breed's fleece and suggestions for processing, spinning and best end uses for the various breeds. A must-own book for fiber artists who work with animal fleeces of all kinds!
July 29, 2013
This book is amazing. I am nearly done with my second readthrough, and I've only had it about three weeks. It is very interesting for a reference book. (Of course, that could just be because I'm obsessed by spinning, weaving, and knitting.)
It is inspiring for spinners and other crafters who work with animal fiber and yarn. I have begun seeking out rarer breeds to spin, and I've started a sample binder for myself to keep track of what I like and don't like and other observations as well as spun samples and knitted and woven swatches. Just knowing what effort it takes to make a few samples, I admire the authors of this book for their contribution to the fiber community.
It is inspiring for spinners and other crafters who work with animal fiber and yarn. I have begun seeking out rarer breeds to spin, and I've started a sample binder for myself to keep track of what I like and don't like and other observations as well as spun samples and knitted and woven swatches. Just knowing what effort it takes to make a few samples, I admire the authors of this book for their contribution to the fiber community.
January 22, 2012
Okay, I have to give this 5 stars because I wrote it and I know what went into it. I do know that there was more I wanted to write, but we ran out of time. I wish I knew how to add the cover image! I have one right here on my computer. / Hmm. I also am trying to change from the e-book edition (which I have not seen yet, although I know it exists) to the physical book, which isn't in the database. Can you guess that I'm relatively new here? I signed up about the time I started researching Fleece & Fiber, at which point I suddenly didn't have time for anything else. . . .
January 9, 2015
What a joy this book was! I reference it often. I am a spinner/knitter/dyer and have been playing around with different local breeds of sheep. This book has helped me in so many ways! I can pull a sample from my fiber stash, compare it to the very helpful (and numerous) pictures of samples. It helps me identify which breed in a cross-bred animal is more present in the fiber, and how to go about preparing it and spinning it. A treasured book.
August 27, 2012
This book is a must for hand-spinners. Comprehensive overview of breeds of sheep and many other animals around the world. Photos of each type animals, fiber, yarn, plus a knit and a woven swatch for each breed. How did they get this done? Authors gave historical information and other interesting tidbits of information. This is a large, heavy book but fasinating to study.
January 10, 2013
In my opinion, one of the best sources of information about fiber for spinning or even for knitting and how to use it. It is beautifully printed and written and I've read it cover to cover, twice (and got Deb to sign it). I can't say enough about what an invaluable resource this is for information about fiber, especially about wool.
November 12, 2016
Comprehensive and beautiful photos and illustrations throughout. Overview of many different animals and plants that people use to make useful things in our lives. Reference and coffee table book. Great gift for any knitter, spinner, weaver, etc. in your life.
Good quality paper and binding.
Need to buy and reread.
Good quality paper and binding.
Need to buy and reread.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews