Hello designers! I am the owner and creator of Ranching Tradition Fiber. I am a fifth generation Montana Rancher who raises sheep, Spins, processes, dyes, crochets and knits. I have my own yarn line called “Tobacco Root Valley” which is named after the mountain range that over looks the valley where we live. We will have 12 colorways. Sumac, Larkspur, Madison, Slate, Rye, Fir, Cone, Chokecherry, Fall Ash, Natural White, Big Sky, and Sage Our yarn is available in multi

Feeders are a great tool to use when trying to keep vm off the sheep’s backs and out of the wool. We only use the feeders during lambing season, when the wool is short. The feeders help keep the vm off by not allowing the hay to fall down onto the sheep, they also work well when trying to keep hay waste to a minimum. Below first is our long feeder is fed with a tractor, but it still needs altered so the lambs cannot crawl through it. Our smaller feeder is made out of rebar an

Improving the Quality of Your Fleece Vegetable matter, or vm, is a problem all spinners know too well. Keeping fleeces clean and healthy is a year round battle. During the spring and summer, we fight burrs and thistles, and just when we’ve won that battle, we have to fight hay and straw throughout the long winter months. Protecting fleeces from vm is not always an easy task, but there are a few actions that can be taken to reduce its presence, therefore, improving the overall

Have you been looking for something fun to knit using handspun yarns? Stix Yarn shop in downtown Bozeman Montana created these 2 patterns using especially for Ranching Tradition Yarns. We hope to keep adding more yarns a patterns in the weeks to come ~Stix Beginner Hat~ his simple hat is a great way to learn how to read a pattern, work ribbing and decreases, and use circular and double-pointed needles. You can make a beanie or a slouchy hat to fit everyone you know! Sizes Ba

The sheep are all sheared. We took a step up in the world and had three people shearing this year. It takes quite a crew to keep up with 3 shearers. I am very blessed with friends and family that helped make the day go so smoothly. We track each fleece with a number that comes from ear tags that are on each sheep. Another spinner and I were in charge of the 2 skirting tables. The fleece’s are very clean this year. We have had a cold winter with snow for the last 2 mont

Information Spin Count, Micron and Comfort Factor... Spin Count - Quoted from the book "In sheep's Clothing" This system originated in the worsted industry in Bradford England, and is sometimes referred to as the Bradford count, or spinning count. It is based on the maximum number of skeins each 560 yards long that can be spun from one pound of combed top. The higher the quality number, the finer the fleece - a 36s fleece is quite coarse and a 80s is very fine. Taking

All of the following was quoted from “In Sheep's Clothing" Polypay The Polypay is a relatively recent entry on the list of breeds in the United States. Development began in 1968 with initial crosses of Targhee x Dorset and Rambouillet x Finnsheep. The aims were a large early lamb crop, lambing more than once a year, rapid growth rate and high meat yield. Polypays are medium -sized, polled sheep with white faces. Because of the recent formation of this breed and its o