One of the first things a spinner working with grease fleece needs to know to select good fleeces is how to assess the handle or hand of a fleece. Basically, handle is a subjective opinion of the quality of a particular fleece based on observation and feel.

There are four main factors that need to be considered to determine handle:

1. The appearance of the color of the fleece. Is the color even through out the fleece? Does it appear bright and lively or dead, dull, chalky, or frowsy? (Frowsy: dry, lifeless, without distinct crimp, of poor quality.)

2. The appearance and evenness of the crimp. Is the pattern of the crimp distinct and clear? Is it even and well defined throughout the lock? Is the crimp appropriate for the breed?

3. What does the fleece feel like when it’s handled. Does it have a nice feel to it? Does it feel soft or coarse? Is it dry, gummy or sticky? Or does it feel light and airy? Does it feel appropriate for the breed and for the end use?

4. An assessment of the fineness or coarseness of the breed. What is the estimated diameter of the fiber? Is it a fine wool breed or a coarse wool breed? Is the fiber diameter appropriate for the breed and for the end use?

Here is a list of words commonly used to describe the physical feel of a fleece:
Soft; coarse; lustrous; non-lustrous; strong; airy; yolky; weak; elastic; resilient; bright; dull; neppy; chalky; dry; harsh; brittle; crisp; tender; springy; spongy; silky; cottony; wiry; tippy; hairy’ frowsy; gummy; sticky; lofty; weathered.

The four characteristics of a fleece that are the most important to handspinners are:
Softness, elasticity and loft, staple length, and luster.

Soft fleeces come from the fine wool breeds, such as Merino. The scales of these fibers are close together and overlap each other giving the fleece a smooth, fine, delicate handle. Fine fleeces have more crimp than coarse fleeces and the crimp is clearly defined.

Elasticity refers to the qualities of resilience of a fleece. A resilient fleece will spring back to its original shape after being stretched without being damaged. Loft is the openness and airiness of the fleece.

Staple length is the length of the locks of fleece from cut end to tip.


Luster is the apparent gloss or sheen of a fleece and it is due to the way light is reflected off of the scales of the fleece. Lustrous fleeces have scales that are farther apart than those of fine wool breeds so they reflect more light and have a shinier appearance.

This exercise, first developed by Pamela Abell, will help you learn to see and evaluate the differences between fleeces.

You will need:
4 sheets of paper (card stock is nice).
A permanent marker.
A ruler.
Sample locks (or whole fleeces) of three distinct fleece types: 1 fine wool, such as Merino; 1 down breed such as Suffolk; one luster long wool breed, such as Lincoln.

Label the four sheets at the top: 1 Softness, 1 Elasticity & loft; 1 Staple length; and one Luster. Then draw 6 equal sized boxes on each sheet (2 rows of 3 boxes per row).

Label the boxes on the Softness sheet at follows:
Top row: 1. High softness grease; 2. Medium, Softness grease; 3. low softness grease
Bottom row: 1. High softness washed; 2 medium softness washed; 3. Low softness washed.

Mount a few locks of the appropriate grease fleece in each grease fleece box and then wash a few sample locks of each fleece and mount them in the appropriate “washed” box.

Follow the same procedure for the other 3 sheets:

For elasticity and loft: Top row: 1 High elasticity and loft grease, 2. Medium elasticity and loft grease; 3. Low elasticity and loft grease. Bottom row: same, but change grease to washed.

For staple length: Top row:1. Long staple grease; 2. medium staple grease; 3. short staple grease. Bottom row: same but change grease to washed.

For luster: Top row: 1. High luster grease, 2; medium luster grease; 3: low luster grease.
Bottom row: same, changing grease to washed.

This exercise really helps increase awareness of the differences in fleeces both in the grease and when washed. It makes an excellent permanent reference for choosing fleeces for a project. Simply make as many sheets as you want and mount small samples of each new fleece you get.