In Sheep's Clothing: A Handspinner's Guide to Wool

Rating:
Summary: In Sheep's Clothing
Review: I found this to be a wonderful reference. I have many books on knitting and some on spinning, but this was something very different and a great resource. In this book I learned a lot about the differences in the fiber, making me think more carefully about what I wanted to do with the wool and whether or not it would meet my needs. I have found myself coming back to it time and again looking up various pieces of information. A "must have" resource for the spinner and fiber enthusiast.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful reference book
Review: This is a wonderful reference book for handspinners. It covers many sheep breeds, giving descriptions of the fleece (staple length, quality rating, typical uses, and even a photo of a lock for about 90% of the breeds). As a beginning handspinner, I found this to be indispensible information, since most of the stuff I've managed to find about sheep breeds has been directed at livestock types. I appreciated the technique sections, since they scratched the surface of matching your spinning style to the fleece. If you are trying to get a good idea of how to consciously select appropriate wool and technique for your projects, this is the place to start. The only thing I would change would be to have color photos, and more of them - particularly in the colored fleece section.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful reference book
Review: This is a wonderful reference book for handspinners. It covers many sheep breeds, giving descriptions of the fleece (staple length, quality rating, typical uses, and even a photo of a lock for about 90% of the breeds). As a beginning handspinner, I found this to be indispensible information, since most of the stuff I've managed to find about sheep breeds has been directed at livestock types. I appreciated the technique sections, since they scratched the surface of matching your spinning style to the fleece. If you are trying to get a good idea of how to consciously select appropriate wool and technique for your projects, this is the place to start. The only thing I would change would be to have color photos, and more of them - particularly in the colored fleece section.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but not for beginners
Review: When I bought this I was a beginner, and to put it mildly, I was underwhelmed. I thought this book would describe the fleeces in such a way as to help me select fleeces to spin. The problem was, my own knowledge at the time was so meager, the book was not helpful. Now that I know more, it is a lot more helpful.

The book is divided into sections, such as "fine wools" like Merino, and "longwools" like Lincoln. Each breed is alloted a picture of a lock of wool, a brief description of the history of the breed, and where that breed tends to be found on the planet. Some of the breeds show a picture of an individual sheep, but most of them just show a lock of fleece.

This is a great reference if you are considering buying fleeces or animals from a breed with which you have no familiarity. It's also a good book if you want to know a little about the history of diverse breeds. However, there is not much detail on any of it.