Breed Guide
Icelandic wool: two coats in one fleece.
Icelandic sheep grow a long, weather-shedding outer coat over a soft, insulating undercoat. Made together into lopi, a yarn with little or no twist, that wool makes Iceland's famous yoked sweaters.
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The Breed
- Viking-era roots: the breed's ancestors arrived with Norse settlers roughly 1,100 years ago, and the flock has been kept largely isolated since.
- Northern European short-tailed: a close relative of the Shetland and Faroese, with a naturally short tail.
- Dual-purpose: raised for meat as well as wool; the fleece was once essential for clothing in a sub-Arctic climate.
- Fleece weight: adults commonly grow about 4–7 lb (roughly 2–3 kg) a year, and many flocks are shorn twice, in spring and autumn.
- Low grease: Icelandic fleeces carry relatively little lanolin, so they lose less weight when washed than many other breeds.
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Tog & Thel
| Tog (outer coat) | Thel (undercoat) | |
|---|---|---|
| Fiber diameter | About 27–30+ µm | About 19–22 µm, finer in some sheep |
| Length | Long: often 6–8 in (15–20 cm) in half a year | Short: about 2–4 in (5–10 cm) |
| Character | Lustrous, strong, little crimp; sheds water | Soft, crimpy, lofty; insulates |
| Used alone for | Hard-wearing yarn, rugs, weaving | Fine, soft yarn and lace |
Lopi is spun from both coats together, which gives it warmth and strength at once, plus a slightly hairy surface. Hand spinners often separate them: thel alone makes a surprisingly soft yarn, and fine Icelandic lace shawls were traditionally knit from it.
Figures are typical ranges; individual sheep vary a lot.
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Natural Colors
Like other short-tailed breeds, Icelandic sheep come in a wide range of natural colors, from white and cream through greys, browns (also called moorit) and black, with badger-face and mouflon patterns on top. Fleeces where the undercoat and outer coat differ in color give a naturally heathered yarn.
Undyed natural shades are a hallmark of traditional Icelandic knitwear.
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The Lopi Family
| Yarn | Rough weight | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Plötulopi (plate lopi) | Unspun; knit single or doubled | Wound in flat wheels with no twist at all; fragile until knit |
| Einband | Lace to fingering | Fine yarn for shawls and lightweight knits |
| Léttlopi | Aran / worsted | About half the thickness of standard lopi; a popular sweater yarn |
| Álafoss lopi | Bulky | The classic thick lopi for outdoor sweaters |
| Bulky lopi | Super bulky | Very thick, quick-knitting |
Names refer to traditional Icelandic yarn types; individual mills' versions vary in thickness. Compare with standard categories in Yarn Weights & Fabric GSM.
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The Lopapeysa
- Younger than it looks: knitting reached Iceland around the 16th century, but the yoked lopapeysa developed in the mid-20th century.
- Knit in the round: the body and sleeves are knit as tubes, then joined onto one circular needle for the yoke.
- The yoke does the shaping: decreases are hidden in the circular colorwork band around the neck and shoulders.
- A national symbol: after Iceland became a republic in 1944, the sweater grew into an emblem of Icelandic identity.
- Hand-knit or not: genuinely hand-knit sweaters cost far more than machine-knit ones; check the label if it matters to you.
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Knitting & Wearing It
- Handle plate lopi gently: with no twist it pulls apart easily. Join broken ends by overlapping and rubbing them with a little moisture so they felt together.
- Grippy for colorwork: the slightly hairy fiber holds stitches and floats in place, and steeks hold well.
- Warm when damp: the outer coat sheds light rain and snow, and the fabric keeps much of its warmth when wet.
- Prickle: the tog makes lopi feel scratchy to many people. Wear a layer underneath; see Why Wool Itches.
- Hand wash cool: lopi felts readily. Air sweaters between wears, wash rarely, and dry flat.