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.