Editing Carding (section)

===Hand carders===
[[File:Rolag.jpg|thumb|Creating a [[rolag]] using hand cards]]
[[File:Rhof-kardierenSpinnenStricken.ogv|thumb|Irreler Bauerntradition shows carding, spinning and knitting in the [[Roscheider Hof Open Air Museum]]]]
Hand cards are typically square or rectangular paddles manufactured in a variety of sizes from {{convert|2|x|2|in|cm}} to {{convert|4|x|8|in|cm}}. The working face of each paddle can be flat or cylindrically curved and wears the card cloth. Small cards, called flick cards, are used to flick the ends of a lock of fibre, or to tease out some strands for spinning off.<ref>{{cite web|last=Matherne|first=Patrick|title=What is Carding|url=http://www.fromsheeptoshawl.com/2012/fiber/what-is-carding/|access-date=8 May 2012}}</ref>

A pair of cards is used to brush the wool between them until the fibres are more or less aligned in the same direction. The aligned fibre is then peeled from the card as a [[rolag]]. Carding is an activity normally done outside or over a drop cloth, depending on the wool's cleanliness. Rolag is peeled from the card.{{citation needed|date=May 2012}} <!-- If the wool contains a lot of vegetable matter, much of it will fall out during the carding process, which is the reason for a drop cloth. If the carding is being done to mix two pre-carded fibers, a drop cloth is not generally necessary.

To card, the person carding sits with a card in each hand. The card in the non-dominant hand (left for most people) rests on a leg. A small amount of fiber is placed on this card and the other card is pulled through the fibre. The moving card separates, straightens, and aligns the fibres. Vegetable matter falls out as the fibres are aligned. Catching too many fibres makes it hard to pull the cards apart. This step, repeated many times, transfers small amounts of the wool to the moving card. Once all the wool has been transferred, the cards are swapped hand-for-hand and the process repeated until all of the fibre is sufficiently aligned and satisfactorily free of debris at which time a rolag is peeled from the card.-->
[[File:Quilt making 04.JPG|thumb|right|A carding machine in [[Haikou]], [[Hainan Province]], [[China]]]]
This product (rovings, rolags, and batts) can be used for [[spinning (textiles)|spinning]].

Carding of wool can either be done "in the grease" or not, depending on the type of machine and on the spinner's preference. "In the grease" means that the [[lanolin]] that naturally comes with the wool has not been washed out, leaving the wool with a slightly greasy feel. The large drum carders do not tend to get along well with lanolin, so most commercial worsted and woollen mills wash the wool before carding. Hand carders (and small drum carders too, though the directions may not recommend it) can be used to card lanolin-rich wool.