Updated for 2026

The Festival’s Fleece Show & Sale brings together shepherds and fiber artists for the sale and purchase of wool fleeces, with an emphasis on handspinning quality, and to reward excellence in the production of beautiful fleeces.  It provides an educational showcase of fleeces from over 60 breeds and crosses. Knowledgeable volunteers are always available to answer questions and assist customers seeking fleeces to suit their needs.

~Attention~

2026 Featured Breed: Scottish Blackface. A breed-specific class will be offered with special awards sponsored by the Friends of Scottish Blackface Sheep.

Electronic Entry Forms. Entry forms may be completed electronically and submitted by email (preferred). Entry fees must still be paid by check and sent via postal mail. Entries will not be considered complete until checks have been received.

Breed Specific Classes on Probation: Division III Breed-specific classes with low Show & Sale entries for more than 2 years are put on probation for a year.  This means that if sufficient Show & Sale entries to a breed class are not received this year, that breed-specific class will not be offered for next year.  We’d like to see a minimum of 10 fleeces from at least 3 different flocks in order to hold a breed specific class (the same criteria exist for creating a new breed-specific class). Breeds on probation in 2026 include: Bluefaced Leicester, Cotswold, Finnsheep, Lincoln, Merino, Rambouillet and Romeldale.

Division III Premiums Expanded:  Premiums will be awarded for 1^st through 4^th places for Division III Breed Specific Show and Sale fleeces, according to the same schedule as for Divisions I and II classes (previously only 1^st & 2^nd places received premiums).

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Fleece Entry Options

All fleeces must be for sale.

• Show and Sale ($7 per fleece): Fleeces entered in competition to be judged and eligible for awards, and also consigned for sale.
• Sale Only ($4 per fleece): Fleeces consigned for sale but not judged or eligible for awards .

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Fleece Standards

• 1. Producers are urged to be selective in choosing fleeces to enter.
• 2. Fleeces must be from the current (2025-2026) wool clip and represent no more than 18 months growth.
• 3. Whole raw skirted fleeces only (no half or partial fleeces or washed fleeces).
• 4. Each fleece must be skirted to ensure it is clean, dry, as free as possible of contaminants (e.g., vegetative matter (VM), chaff, burrs, manure tags and second cuts, etc.).
• 5. Minimum fleece weight of 2 pounds. Weights should be appropriate for a skirted fleece of the particular breed or class.
• 6. Minimum staple length of 2 inches. Note that at least 3 inches preferred by most hand-spinners (as appropriate to breed type).
• 7. The Fleece Show & Sale Committee reserves the right to reject any fleeces not meeting standards. Entry fees will not be refunded for rejected fleeces.

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Entering Fleeces

• 8. Download the entry form here.
• 9.  Completed forms can be submitted by email to gro.l1782438961oowdn1782438961apeeh1782438961s@woh1782438961secee1782438961lf1782438961 (or printed and mailed). Entry Fee payment MUST be mailed by post.
• 10. Completed entry forms must be RECEIVED no later than Thursday, April 23, 2026. Entries will not be considered complete until the fee has been received.
• 11. Maximum of 7 fleeces per exhibitor. The same fleece may not be entered in more than one class or division.
• 12. Entry fees are: $4 per fleece consigned for Sale Only, and $7 per fleece consigned for both Show and Sale.
• 13. Producers are responsible for entering their fleeces in the appropriate division and class. Judges may not re-classify Show & Sale fleeces once they are delivered.
• 14. Breed designation: Breed information on the entry forms should be designated in one of two ways:

a. For purebred single breed:  Breed Name (e.g. Romney)

b. For crosses or mixes: Predominant Breed Name X (e.g., Romney X). Predominant Breed refers to the breed that is either the highest percentage breed in the cross OR the breed in the cross/mix whose qualities are most reflected in the individual fleece.

Additional details may be entered under the optional Fleece ID field and will print out on the tag that will be fastened to the bag (e.g., sheep ID, lamb, adult ewe, ram, etc.).

• 15. Weights must be rounded to the nearest quarter pound. The Committee reserves the right to re-weigh fleeces if entered weights are questionable).
• 16. Prices are to be set by the producers. Producers are urged to be reasonable in the prices they set. A summary of the price ranges for different breeds and categories of fleeces entered last year is available on the Festival website.
• 17. The commission on sales will be 10% for MSBA members (current as of April 23, 2026) and 20% for non-members. If you wish to join MSBA (or update your membership), go to https://marylandsheepbreeders.org/membership/join/
• 18. Fleeces must be in a clear, unmarked plastic bag that can be easily opened (no ties or knots). Sale-only fleeces may have additional information in the fleece bag. Competition fleeces may have information enclosed in a plain blank white envelope placed inside the bag.
• 19. Fleeces must be delivered to the Fleece Show & Sale during the designated hours (Friday May 1, between 10:00 am and 4:30 pm).
• 20. The Committee reserves the right to reject any fleeces not meeting standards (e.g., excessive dirt or VM, fleeces with active lice, excessively short fleeces (less than 2 inches), cotted, wet or moldy fleeces, etc.). Entry fees will not be refunded for rejected fleeces.

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Show and Sale Rules and Responsibilities

• 21. Producers entering fleeces are responsible for picking up their ribbons in the Fleece Show & Sale office anytime after 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Premiums will be mailed to winners with their fleece sales checks.
• 22. Judge’s comments on show fleeces will be available for producers to view in the Fleece Show office area beginning at 10:00 Saturday morning. They will be identified ONLY by fleece number (keep your receipts so you know the ID numbers they were assigned at check-in).
• 23. Producers are responsible for picking up unsold fleeces following the close of the sale on Sunday from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Any abandoned fleeces will become the property of the Festival and MSBA.
• 24. Every effort will be made to display and care for the entered fleeces, but the Festival and MSBA assume no responsibility for damaged, lost, or stolen fleeces.

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Fleece Show & Sale Divisions and Classes

Division I –  Natural Colored (non-white) Fleeces

Division II – White Fleeces

All fleeces in Divisions I and II will be judged on suitability for handspinning.

1st ($20), 2nd ($15), 3rd ($12) and 4th ($10) places and Honorable Mention will be awarded for each class per judges’ discretion.

Divisions I and II will each have classes A, B, C and D as follows:

• A. Fine: (17-22 microns) (e.g., Cormo, Merino, Rambouillet, etc.)
• B. Medium: (22-31 microns) (e.g., Cheviot, Columbia, Corriedale, Finn, Montadale, etc.)
• B1. Down-Type Medium wool (e.g., Southdown, Suffolk, Hampshire, Shropshire, Dorset, Cheviot, Tunis, Clun Forest, etc.)
• C. Long: (31-40+ microns) (e.g., Border Leicester, Coopworth, Cotswold, Lincoln, Romney, Wensleydale, etc.)
• D. Primitive: (e.g., Icelandic, Karakul, Navajo-Churro, Scottish Blackface, Shetland, etc.)

Division III – Breed Class Fleeces

Judging will be based on breed standards and on suitability for handspinning.

1st ($20), 2nd ($15), 3rd ($12) and 4th ($10) and Honorable Mention will be awarded for each breed class per judges’ discretion.

2026 Breed-specific Classes: Bluefaced Leicester, Border Leicester, Coopworth, Cormo, Corriedale, Cotswold, Finnsheep, Gotland, Gulf Coast, Jacob, Karakul, Leicester Longwool, Lincoln, Merino, Perendale, Rambouillet, Romeldale, Romney, Scottish Blackface, Shetland, Valais Blacknose.

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2026 Special Fleece Show Awards

• *Grand Champion Fleece – $100 and Rosette
• *Champion Fleece, each Division – $50 and Rosette
• *The Pat Brown Memorial Award: Best Maryland Fleece – $25 and Cup
• *The Tyson Creamer Memorial Award: Best 4-H Fleece – $25
• Best Uncoated Fleece – $25
• *Maryland Shepherds Cup – $100 – Awarded for the best set of five handspinning fleeces from an individual Maryland shepherd or flock. Established in 2018 in remembrance of Mary Ann Jackson.

2026 Sponsored Awards

• Bluefaced Leicester Union Award for Highest Placing BFL Fleece – $50
• Champion Leicester Longwool Fleece (sponsored by Budding Creek Farm) – $50
• Best Leicester Longwool Natural Colored Fleece (sponsored by The Ross Farm) – $25
• Best Leicester Longwool White Fleece (sponsored by Underhill Farm) – $25
• Best Cotswold Fleece (sponsored by The Ross Farm) – $25
• Best Jacob Fleece (sponsored by The Ross Farm) – $25
• N. American Perendale Assocation Champion White Perendale Fleece – $50
• N. American Perendale Assocation Champion Natural Colored Perendale Fleece – $50
• Best Romeldale Fleece (sponsored by The Ross Farm) – $25
• Friends of Scottish Blackface Awards: Champion ($50), 2nd ($25), and 3rd ($15) placing SBF Fleeces

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Silent Auction

Selected Special Fleece Show Award winners (designated below by *) will be placed on a separate table following judging and will be available for silent auction bids from 8:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Saturday. The starting prices will be the producer’s asking prices. Bidding will close at 3:00 p.m. Saturday, and these fleeces may be picked up by the winning bidders after 3:30 p.m.

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Schedule

• Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. – Fleeces accepted
• Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. – Judging of show fleeces
• Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to  5:00 p.m. – Fleece Sales
• Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to  3:00 p.m. – Silent auction for Special Award fleeces
• Saturday, 12:00 p.m. (approx.) – Judges discuss show fleece placings
• Sunday, 9:00 a.m. to  3:00 p.m. – Fleece Sales
• Sunday, 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. – Producers pick-up unsold fleeces

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Questions?

Questions should be directed to gro.l1782438961oowdn1782438961apeeh1782438961s@woh1782438961secee1782438961lf1782438961.