The beauty of Merino wool

Here at World of Wool it’s quite obvious that we love

wool! From the curly Wensleydale to the proud Blue

Faced Leicester, we really do love every breed; but

we have to say there is a special place in our

hearts for Merino.

You see, the wool fibre from the lovely Merino is considered to be the softest and finest wool

of any in the world, and is specifically bred for its luxurious coat, which is why it is every

crafters dream fibre.

Apart from being super soft, Merino wool has many other qualities including, flame

retardancy, odour resistant, stain resistant, water resistant and it is naturally elastic. It is also

excellent at regulating body temperature, especially when worn against the skin, providing

warmth without overheating the wearer. Qualities such as this are the reason why it is in such

high demand, and why our Merino products are some of our best sellers.

The Merino sheep and its crossbreeds are the basis of southern hemisphere fine wool

production. The Merino originated in Spain, but grows well in arid conditions as found in

Australia, South Africa (where our fibre comes from) and parts of New Zealand. The Merino

ranges in micron from superfine, 12-13 microns to coarse, 25-26 microns, although the bulk of

Merino wool production is 20-23 microns. Staple length varies from 30-90 mm.

As well as being used by craft enthusiasts around the world, Merino has also become

common in high-end, performance athletic wear. It has been used for use in running, hiking,

skiing, mountain climbing, cycling, and in other types of outdoor aerobic exercise. Sports

clothing featuring Merino command a premium over synthetic fabrics.

We’d like to think that our love for all things Merino is represented in the selection of products

that we have for our lovely crafting customers to buy - either online or in our factory shop -

including Merino fibre as nature intended in its natural form; special Merino mixed bags; and

of course our dyed Merino wool tops in either 18.5 or 23Mic, which come in over 100 colours -

perfect for needle felting, wet felting and spinning.

We also have a range of wet, needle and nuno felting kits which include dyed Merino of the

23Mic 64’s range.

Do you love Merino as much as we do? Let us know on Twitter, Facebook or Ravelry.