Skirting The Fiber

On the hottest day of the year so far, Chris (my dear friend and alpaca farmer) and I decided to skirt the fiber that had been sheared a few weeks prior.  Skirt???  What???  Skirting means taking the fleece, putting it on a grate, bouncing it around to get some of the dirt and the dreaded "VM" (vegetable matter!) out of it, and then pulling out and throwing away the parts of the fleece that are under 2" in length, those parts that are matted with VM that didn't fall out and, basically, getting it ready to go to the fiber mill.

It was also an opportunity to meet the newest member of the family.  She was born three weeks ago with her forelegs completely folded back at the first joint (think ankle).  The "pediatrician" came out and assessed the situation and the decision was made to straighten and splint her legs and give it three weeks.  Feisty little girl that she is, her right foreleg is nice and straight with no splint, and her left foreleg is still splinted with a much shorter splint and seems to be doing quite nicely.  The splints did nothing to keep her from bouncing around and acting like any baby alpaca should.  With her beautiful much desired black fiber and her sweet baby face, she will definitely be a star.

A note here.  All alpacas do not look alike.  Other than color differences, each has their own definite personality and look.  Each has a different "do", some have severe under bites, some look quite inquisitive, some look angelic and sweet, but they are all adorable in my eyes! 

Chris learned, through the alpaca grapevine, that hair is known to help soak up oil and alpaca fiber is a perfect resource.  Alpaca fiber is lanolin free and water resistant so it will not soak up the water, but will help soak up the oil from the wetlands and beaches threatened by the major oil spill going on in the Gulf of Mexico. Previously I explained "firsts" and "seconds" in fiber talk. . .firsts being the prime fiber from the blanket of the animal and seconds being shoulder and neck fiber.  After a 2 second discussion, Chris decided to send all the seconds from this year's shearing to the oil spill clean-up operations on the Gulf Coast.  

Here is a close up of a fleece (firsts) just before skirting.  Look at that beautiful "stuff"!  And. . . the feel is amazing!  As one of my fiber fanatic friends said, "I just want to dive into it!".

Having been a knitter for many many years and a spinner for only a year, this whole experience with the animals who produce one of the finest fibers known has been wonderful.  There is so much to learn!  Added to the learning curve is the opportunity to spin and knit alpaca into beautiful warm hats, mittens, scarves and sweaters.

Give Me Strength . . .

. . .to complete at least three fiber projects before the end of June!  That doesn't seem too unreasonable, does it?  Really?

#1   I want to finish my gray Cascade EcoWool cabled coat (I have the back and both fronts done)
#2   I want to finish my alpaca sweater/jacket (I have the back and 1/3 of both fronts done) but I have to finish spinning the yarn for the rest of the fronts and the sleeves.
#3   I MUST finish a baby sweater by then!!!!  (Back is complete, fronts are started)  The rule of thumb is that the baby sweater gifts must be finished BEFORE the baby grows out of them!

THEN. . . I have another sweater "on needles",  as we say in knit talk,  for myself;  two hats and a pair of mittens to do before next fall (easy!), and two more baby sweaters to make before the end of September.

Oh. . . did I mention the two baskets of roving patiently waiting to be spun?  Oh. . . and I am going to "man" a booth at the Northern Michigan Wool and Fiber Show in West Branch at the end of September for Aral Peak Alpacas, which means we have to get the new fiber to the mill in time to be processed so we have enough to take to the show, which means bundling all the new fiber and labeling it after it is washed and made into roving. . . I LOVE IT!!!!!!!

When people from "downstate" ask,  "What do you do up there all year?????"  "Don't you get bored?????".  I am often tempted to reply in the affirmative.  "It really is boring!  There is absolutely nothing to do!  Stay where you are!"

P.S.  I am only fessing up to what you can see!  The closet is off limits!

From Critter to Sweater. . .

Do you want a beautiful alpaca sweater/jacket for next fall and winter?

Below are the simple steps to follow in order to get just the sweater you want!    

It is an "adventure" well worth experiencing if you are a "fiber fancier". . . though some may think it a bit extreme.   

Step One:  Get an alpaca, or two or three or more.  Actually, social animals that they are, you would need at least two in order for them to be happy!

Step Two:  Shear the alpaca and bag the fiber from the saddle area (firsts) and the shoulders and neck area (seconds)

Step Three:  Take the fiber to a fiber mill for washing and carding and processing into roving (or yarn if you wish to skip Step Four).  Be prepared to wait for at least four months for them to process your fiber!

Step Four:  Spin the roving into yarn.  Because alpaca is so dense and warm, spin it quite thin and two-ply it.  Take it from one who made the mistake of thinking it would be pretty nifty to show off her newly learned Navajo Plying techniques to acquire a triple ply yarn.   Had I not listened to my wiser and more experienced fiber friends. . . I would have wound up with a four pound sweater that could only be comfortably worn in the far northern regions of Alaska and Siberia.

Step Five:  Look at hundreds of patterns to decide what it is you want and determine how much yarn you will have to spin to actually finish the project.  You really don't want the disappointment of beginning a sweater/jacket only to have it turn into a vest.  ;-)

Step Six:  Knit, knit, knit, knit. . . . I am at that point in this "adventure"   I will post the final results when the final results become available!

Of course there IS another alternative.

You COULD buy one. . .But what fun would that be?