A Visit to the Fiber Mill

... and yes, it is located with the Alpaca Farm we visited.
The Fiber Mill is not up and running but Vanessa walked us through the process of what happens to the alpaca fleece.

After the alpaca are shorn, it is time for skirting (removal of any undesirable parts e.g., burrs, thistles, weeds, etc.)
Vanessa is showing us the length and the crimping of the fleece.

After skirting, next comes washing, then picking which breaks up dense clumps of fiber and gets it ready for carding.

Carding/Drafting...separates every fiber individually/turned into a fine web of fiber (batt)


Spinning/Plying...

I knew it was work to take fleece, clean it, card it, spin it, and ply it but had no idea just how much how work goes into the yarny goodness of my favorite fiber alpaca yarn.

Thank you Vanessa for taking us through the steps of alpaca farming to the end product after the fleece has been processed.

A Visit to the Farm

... an Alpaca Farm!
The SA Knifty Knitters monthly meeting was a visit to a local Alpaca Farm.

After a warm welcome from our hostess Vanessa, we wandered down to meet the girls. We were invited to hand feed them. They love having a treat and some of the girls get pushy, lol.
Alpacas eat grass which they prefer over grass hay and get a grain supplement.

While we were feeding them, Vanessa explained alpacas are camelid-cousins to camels, llamas, guanacos, and vicunas. Of the camelid species, the alpaca and the vicuna are the most valuable fiber bearing animal. Alpacas are thought to be descendants of the vicuna.

We also learned there are two types of alpaca:
Huacaya, the teddy bear alpaca. They have a crimped and very dense fleece.
Suri, the alpaca with dreadlocks. The Suri are very rare.

She then showed us how warm the bodies are with all that fleece they have now by spreading their fleece apart and having us feel the body. They are shorn once a year, usually in the spring.

After visiting with "the girls," we walked over to meet "Willie and the boys"
(no, I don't know which one is Willie but we can ask Vanessa. She has named all the boys after country singers)

After visiting with "the boys," Vanessa showed us some of the fleeces and the next steps in processing the fiber (more on that tomorrow)

It was a very educational trip, a lovely day, and wonderful visit with the friendly alpacas.

Ten things I learned about alpacas after our visit:
1. Keep the females and males separated
2. They cannot be artificially inseminated, they ovulate when they are bred
3. They have one baby a year, gestation is about 11 months
4. They have a life span of about 15-20 years
5. They have three stomachs and chew their cud similar to a cow
6. They have communal dung piles
7. They like to roll in the grass and dirt but their fleece isn't all that dirty
8. Their fleece has no lanolin and can grow from 3-5 inches
9. How hot their bodies get just before sheering time because of how long their fleece gets
10. They have no top teeth. (I know this first hand because I did hold some grain for them to eat)

(Did I mention how much I love to knit with alpaca?! It is one of my favorite fibers. And when blended with silk... heavenly!!)

Thank you Vanessa for taking the time to show us your alpacas!

Yarn Seduction

As I mentioned before, I had the opportunity to visit the local yarn shop while visiting with my daughter in FL.

After several visits and much fondling touching, I settled on a few choices to bring home...

The Cascade Pure Alpaca will make a lovely scarf. No, I'm not sure what pattern but the light, feathery softness will feel like you're wearing a cloud. It is a calming blue color that will bring serenity to the wearer (me?! or daughter1?!)

The Cascade Heritage Sock Yarn (solid) will make a great pair of cabled fingerless mitts. I will probably use the purple for that cable pattern. I'm not sure if I'll make socks with the red yarn or another pair of mitts. I don't have many solid colors for sock yarn and I'm trying to widen my horizons (lol) so I bought red. (Red is "HOT" and it's the color of "Love" How could I not buy some red during the Red Hot Love month of February? Besides, I bought the purple (nobility and spirituality) that is opposite of Red Hot)


I did manage to knit a little while in FL. Newborns can keep you busy! and of course I love taking care of my daughter2 and her husband. My daughter loved the Cupcake Mitts I was working on and requested a pair. While I have a limited supply of solid sock yarn, my DK weight yarn is almost non-existent.

Not to worry... Unwind has some beautiful DK weight yarn in Alpaca Silk!!

Once again purple! Purple can boost your imagination or an artist's creativity. (Maybe they'll be her muse when she's writing poetry?)

I love the soft feel of alpaca and silk. What wonderful yarn for fingerless mitts! I couldn't resist buying some for myself... in turquoise... a refreshing and sophisticated color! Sounds like me, right? sophisticated? (ok, get up off the floor from all that laughing) I did buy a few extra hanks thinking a beret would be fun to knit (found a pattern here) and would go with the mitts. (No, I didn't have the pattern with me or I might have bought enough to make the scarf too)


And lastly...
Encore Colorspun. Out of all the stuff my daughter received for the baby, she only got two sweaters (made by me) and one pink hooded jacket. We later found a little white sweater. Well, I can't have a cold granddaughter! And it's been cold in FL lately. So the Encore Colorspun will eventually become a sweater. I'm going to try to knit this sweater on my knitting machine! (and in case your wondering... no... I will not be madly knitting it to get it to FL before spring. I know my limitations. My plan is to have it done for fall!!

p.s.
and to that plan I've added having a sweater done for the other two grandkids... yes, that'll be three sweaters done by fall... in additon to all the other projects planned... quit laughing at me...ok, I'll admit it... I have strong aspirations