From Rabbit to Yarn: Preparing English Angora Wool for the Mill

One of my favorite parts of raising Angora rabbits is watching the journey from raw wool to finished yarn.

In this week’s livestream from the rabbitry, I’m working with a beautiful batch of English Angora wool from Betty Chu. The fiber is incredibly soft and luxurious, and I’m carefully sorting it in preparation for a potential yarn mill run.

Sorting Angora wool properly is an important step before sending fiber to a mill. During the process I evaluate staple length, cleanliness, and fiber quality to determine what will spin best into a consistent yarn.

This particular batch of English Angora is gloriously soft, and I’m excited to see what it becomes. If everything goes well, we may soon have something special:

“Betty Yarn”

Why Fiber Sorting Matters

Before Angora wool can be processed into yarn, it must be carefully evaluated and sorted. This helps ensure the mill receives high-quality prime fiber that will produce the best possible yarn.

When I sort Angora wool, I typically look for:

• Strong staple length
• Clean fiber with minimal debris
• Consistent texture and softness
• Proper maturity of the wool

Fiber that doesn’t meet mill standards doesn’t go to waste. I save those fibers for hand processing, hand dyeing, and handspinning projects.

Watch the Process Live

If you enjoy seeing the behind-the-scenes work of Angora fiber preparation, rabbitry life, and luxury fiber processing, I invite you to join me live.

I currently go live on YouTube:

Mondays and Wednesdays at 10 AM PST

During these sessions we work through all kinds of rabbitry and fiber tasks including:

• Angora rabbit evaluations
• Grooming and coat care
• Wool harvesting and sorting
• Preparing fiber for mills or handspinning

You never know what might happen in the rabbitry — and that’s half the fun.

Watch the video here:
Angora Artisan Live #6 - Giant Angora Rabbits & Fiber Arts - YouTube

The Magic of Angora Fiber

Angora wool is one of the most luxurious natural fibers in the world. Known for its incredible softness, warmth, and halo, it has been prized by fiber artists for generations.

Whether it becomes mill-spun yarn or handspun treasures, every batch of Angora wool has its own story.

And Betty’s wool just might become something very special.

Stay tuned for updates on the Betty Yarn project.

Stay Fluffy My Friends,
Tammy, Fuzzy Vaughn’s Farm
Life’s just better with a Giant Angora hug

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