ROVING
Roving can be made from a drum carder or a blending board. Roving is a tube-like fiber form made by dizzing fiber off a drum carder or blending board. Roving is fiber that is disoriented and can be of different lengths. The disorientation of the fibers allows for air "pockets" between fibers giving it loft. When this fiber is spun using a woolen draw, such as long-draw, the yarn can be quite warm because of the trapped air.
A drum carder is used to make a sheet of fiber called a batt. There are home-sized ones and huge, commercial drum carders.
See a side-by-side comparison of some of the more popular home-sized drum carders.
Once a batt is completed and left on the drum carder, a diz is used to remove the fiber from the carder to produce roving. Watch the video on how I make roving.
You can diz roving off of a blending board too. See how I do that in the video below.
Roving is also often used by needle felters.
Try different drafting styles such as woolen long draw or worsted short forward and examine the differences. Notice that the yarn made with roving is not as sleek and smooth as yarn made from a combed top.
Have fun and keep learning.
If you want to learn more about roving, combed top, worsted and woolen check out my classes at the Camaj School of Fiber Arts. I would love to have you in class. Click the photo below to head on over to the school.
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