Sheep Breeds—loosely grouped by wool types

Merino

Delaine Merino

Rambouillet   requires careful preparation

Debouillet   good for the softest, "next to the skin" garments

Booroola Merino

Cormo

Shetland

Medium Wool

Suffolk

Dorset

Oxford

Hampshire

Shropshire

Southdown

Jacob

Clun Forest   good beginner fleeces

Tunis   used most often for mittens, hats,

Finnish Landrace (Finnsheep)   sweaters, gloves and jackets

Polworth

Perendale

Navajo Churro

Columbia

Panama

Romeldale

Targhee

Corriedale

Montadale

Longwool

Romney

Lincoln

Cotswold

Leicester

Border Leicester   good for outer garments

Coopworth   lend themselves to worsted yarns

Lincoln Longwool

Teeswater

Wensleydale

Shetland

Coarsewool/mountain

Karakul

Cheviot

Scottish Blackface

Welsh Mountain   used for hardwearing fabrics and rugs

Black Welsh Mountain

Rough Fell

Swaledale

(Remember, these are just recommendations, not rules set in stone!)

For soft yarn,

Fine: Merino, Southdown, fine Romney, Corriedale,Shetland

Medium: Corriedale, Perendale, Romney, Shetland

For thick, bulky yarn: Cheviot, Perendale, Southdown, or fine Romney

For shiny yarn: long-stapled lustrous breeds such as Leicester, Coopworth, or Romney

For dull yarn: Cheviot, Southdown.

For hard yarn: Lincoln, Leicester, Coopworth, strong Romney.

For smooth yarn: long-stapled fleece from Romney, Leicester, or Coopworth.

Simmons, Paula. Turning Wool Into a Cottage Industry, Seattle, WA: Madrona Publishers, Inc., 1985.

Raven, Lee. Hands On Spinning, Loveland, Co: Interweave Press, 1987.

Brown, Rachel. The Weaving, Spinning, and Dyeing Book, New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1984.

Field, Anne. The Ashford Book of Spinning, New Zealand.