AlpacaConnect

Once alpaca fleece is in the bag, what is it worth? The textile manufacturer could not care less whether the fleece available for sale came from a prize winning stud or the herd's ugly duckling. Understanding what qualities the buyer desires most is the key to getting maximum value from alpaca fiber production.

All natural fiber falls into one of two categories, carpet or apparel. Carpet is coarse, apparel is fine. Apparel fiber is more scarce than carpet fiber and sells for considerably more money per unit of measurement on the international market.

The textile market is dominated by sheep wool. All other animal fiber, including alpaca, is known as "specialty fiber." The results of processing trials conducted by fiber experts Bray, Long, and Van Bergen rated mean fiber diameter as the most important quality of sheep wool immediately affecting its value for manufacturing purposes. Their studies rated the relative value given to various fiber properties as follows:

According to Van Bergen and Lang, the reason fineness impacts price is due to its effect on a yarn's "spinning limit," which means that, at any given count of yarn, the finer the fiber, the greater number of fibers in a cross section. This, in turn, leads to a more uniform yarn diameter, greater yarn strength, and greater softness of handle.

Soft garments which can be worn next to the skin are most expensive. Cashmere, with its soft, seductive feel, sells for high dollars in exclusive shops. Why is cashmere always soft and wool often itchy? Fiber fineness.

Over 30% of American consumers surveyed claimed to be allergic to wool. These same people can wear cashmere or alpaca with no adverse reaction. The International Wool Secretariat and CSIRO, the Australian research organization, with its wool technology and animal production divisions, were extremely concerned by the perception that wool commonly caused allergic reactions.

Extensive research has identified the cause of the allergic reactions in consumers who wore wool. The research began by administering common tests for allergic reactions. This involved grinding wool to a fine consistency, suspending it in liquid, spreading it on the allergic consumers and pricking the skin with a needle. The result was that consumers, originally thought to be allergic to wool, didn't react.

What was finally found to be the cause of this so-called allergic reaction to wool? Fiber diameter. The prickle factor was guilty; the coarser the fiber, the more severe the "allergic" reaction.

Researchers found that coarse hairs extending from the yarn or fabric prick the skin and stimulate the pain receptors, thereby causing redness, irritation, and itching. Once fiber diameter was identified as the culprit, studies were done to decide at what mean diameter prickle occurred.

Fiber that averages 21 microns or less tends to be soft to the touch. Fiber with a "coarse edge" over 30 microns almost always itches. Yarns that contain more than 5% fiber over 30 microns create garments that only fleas could love.

Consumers, who previously claimed to be allergic to wool, experience no negative reactions as long as the average micron count of the garment they are wearing does not exceed 21. Further research has conclusively proven that any fabric which is made of any fiber (man-made acrylic, hair from cashmere goats, etc.) averaging more than 21 microns causes pain on the skin and a so-called allergic reaction (see the attached diagram).

Alpaca is no exception. Coarse alpaca itches. Fine alpaca feels smooth and silky next to the skin. That's why fiber diameter is by far and away the most dominate value affecting fiber prices.

Bruce McGregor is a senior scientist with the Victorian Department of Agriculture in Australia, specializing in improving the production and quality of specialty animal fibers. He wrote an extensive article for Alpacas Australia (issue 13, 1995) entitled Alpaca Fleece Development and Methods of Assessing Fibre Quality. His article ranked, in order of importance, the qualities of alpaca fleece that processors have valued over many years, as follows:

1. Fiber diameter
2. Fiber length
3. Fiber color
4. Freedom from contamination
5. Degree of medulation

McGregor does not include tensile strength as a quality affecting value. The strength of alpaca fiber is so superior to other natural fibers, such as wool, that it is not considered an issue in pricing.

Alpaca fiber's staple length is important. Length commands a premium in the market. This is because length increases the manufacturers' ability to spin finer and stronger yarns for weaving. But McGregor still concludes that "Markets usually discriminate against length to a lesser degree than fiber diameter."

The best way to increase uniformity is to reduce the average micron count. A finer fleece has less standard deviation. This is just another reason why micron count is the primary determinate of a fiber sale price.

Another reason for fiber diameter to be the dominate value is that the fiber diameter distribution (FDD) can not be accurately measured on large sale lots. There is too much variability from one fleece to the next. Furthermore, textile manufacturers almost always combine fiber from several lots to make tops. They purposely mix fiber with various micron counts, strength, and length to create a top that meets a certain specification. Finally, the cost of measuring standard deviation in large lots is prohibitive.

There is considerable research which establishes the fact that a more uniform fleece is more "spinnable." A fleece with a co-efficient of variation that is 5% less than a fleece of comparable micron will spin a yarn that performs as if the fleece is one micron finer.

The most dramatic evidence of the influence of micron count on price was the million dollar bale sale which occurred at the annual Australian wool sale. Each kilogram in this one bale of sheep fleece sold for $10,030 Australian. The entire bale made up of 100 kilos of fine merino sheep wool sold to a Japanese textile manufacturer for $1,030,000. The fleece, the finest sheep wool ever tested, averaged 13.8 microns.

Alpaca Breeding for Maximum Value

Any business needs a plan. It really doesn't matter whether you are manufacturing cars, growing corn, or raising alpacas. See How to Buy, Breed, and Succeed in the Alpaca Business. You need a plan. A sound plan begins with an inventory of your product's strengths and weaknesses. If you believe that the ultimate goal of the alpaca business is to produce fiber as opposed to pets, please continue reading.

Alpaca fiber is known as a specialty fiber. In fact, every fiber, other than sheep wool, is known as a specialty fiber. Wool is grown world wide in huge quantities - 432,000 tons in 1994 alone (source: Wool International). Specialty fiber production totals about 142,000 tons per year. Of this, approximately 4,000 tons is alpaca. Scarcity or rarity is one way alpaca fiber competes.

R.C. Couchman, a well known Australian fiber expert, authored an extensive series of articles for Llama Life about alpaca fiber. He made the following point many times over, "Fineness is what specialty fiber is all about." Alpacas shouldn't compete with sheep, which produce large volumes of coarse fiber, when they have an excellent potential to produce fine, soft fiber and receive a significant price premium upon sale.

The business plan at Northwest Alpacas is based on breeding alpacas which produce fine fiber in high volumes. This strategy should enable us to compete effectively at several levels: 1) the textile market, which pays a significant premium for fine fiber; 2) with sheep wool, the bulk of which is coarse; 3) the South American alpaca fiber producers who sell their fiber based on volume, not fineness; and 4) with other ranches selling bloodstock that produces alpacas having coarse hair and lower fleece weights.

Source: The Ideal Alpaca Library, IAC Community

There are two ways that Huacaya breeders think about crimp in the United States. One group believes that crimp is not an important trait. The other camp says crimp is highly desirable. The show rings in all countries value crimp and many breeders around the world select for crimp. Is it important, or not?

Animal breeders are constantly faced with subjective decisions: Who to cull and who to keep. They often rely on subjective, type characteristics to make these decisions. If the type traits that they select for are positively correlated or linked to economically important characteristics then their decisions produce good results. If, on the other hand, these subjective decisions are negatively correlated to important traits the results can be harmful to the breed.

Crimp in alpacas is a subjective, type trait. The first question is whether or not it is positively correlated to any important economic traits. If it is we should select for it; if not we should select against crimp or pay no attention to it at all. The second question, which may be more difficult to answer is, which crimp style or frequency is most preferable?

CRIMP IS NOT IMPORTANT

The argument that crimp is not important is primarily made by Eric Hoffman. Here is what Eric had to say in The Complete Alpaca Book published in 2003.

"Huacaya, as a breed, has some amount of curvature in fibers, in other words, crimp or crinkle. In some alpaca show systems, the various types of crimp are assigned different values. Such hair-splitting distinctions between styles of crimp may serve the purpose of identifying differences between individual animals in high-stakes alpaca shows, but the commercial processors in Peru who move tons of fleeces through their scouring vats based on handle classing (with some recently introduced micron sampling) are not making such distinctions in the fleece used to create their high-fashion end-products found in the top salons in Milan, Paris, and Geneva...

At the time of this writing, no research institution anywhere in the world has presented definitive information correlating crimp to other desirable fiber characteristics in alpacas."

Eric's primary argument is based on the fact that producers do not pay a premium for fiber with superior expressions of crimp.

CRIMP IS IMPORTANT

On the other hand, Dr. Julio Sumar of Peru had this to say about crimp in Huacaya:

"In the Peruvian conditions of alpaca breeding crimpness is highly appreciated for the breeders. They used to say, "In 90% of the cases a crimped fiber is a visual indicator of fineness." When I visited an alpaca textile factory in Peru, where the fleece sorting is carried out entirely by woman's hands, the highly crimped fleeces end up in the very fine fleece section.
Dr. Sumar's remarks were made at the Gold of the Andes Seminar at the Alpaca Western Extravaganza (AWE) Show at Redmond, Oregon in May of 2004.
 

WHO IS RIGHT?

 First, let's exam Eric's argument. It is true that fiber processors do not pay a premium for crimp. In fact, until recently, all fiber purchased in Peru was paid for based only on its weight. In 1998, Grupo Inca began paying a premium for fine fleece. They recognized that the market for finer fiber was strong and that their previous purchasing practices, of paying based on weight, were causing breeders to select for coarser fiber. The fashions they create depend on fine fiber.

There is a limited supply of fine fiber. If the alpaca industry can find a selection pathway to finer fiber then the breed as a whole will become more valuable. The Quechua Indians are some of the world's poorest people. They breed alpacas in the Altiplano and could increase the value of their only cash crop: alpaca fleece, if they had a proven selection marker for fineness.

The pathway to finer fiber may be as simple as selecting for Huacaya with better defined, more frequent crimp. Luis Chavez, who is in charge of purchasing and processing alpaca fiber for Grupo Inca in Peru, presented the following tables ( 1, 2, 3 and 4) at the Gold of the Andes Seminar in Redmond, Oregon. His presentation was entitled, What Alpaca Processors Want from Your Alpaca.

The OFDA gives a measure called curvature (deg/mm) which is related to crimp. The curve has a direct relation with the fiber diameter such as we show in the following chart

Curvature which is an OFDA measurement is defined as:

Fiber curvature is related to crimp. Average Fiber Curvature (AFC) is determined by the measurement of two millimeter (2mm), (0.0787 inch or 5/64 inch), snippets in degrees per millimeter (deg/mm). The greater the number of degrees per inch, the finer the crimp. For wool, low curvature is described as less than 50 deg/mm, medium curvature as the range of 60-90 deg/mm, and high curvature as greater than 100 deg/mm. Source: Fiber Testing Terminology
Curvature loosely correlates to the number of crimps per inch. As you can see from Table 1, Vicuña (12-13 microns), which is the finest natural fiber used to manufacture garments, has more curvature or crimp than Guanaco at 14.6 microns. Both are finer and have more curvature than cashmere. Cashmere, which compares with Royal and Baby alpaca but is a little finer, has a little more curvature.

Grupo Inca is a vertically integrated fiber processor who owns a chain of retail boutiques called Alpaca III. One of their primary concerns is how to reduce the weight of alpaca garments. The solution is simple; they need to work with finer fibers. Chavez says, Alpaca fiber and wool have almost the same density (1.32 vs 1.30 grams per centimeter) but the wool garments are lighter than the alpaca.

Chavez goes on to say, "If you have a small box filled with coiled springs made of the same diameter wire as a similar box filled with straight pieces of the same wire, the box filled with the springs will be the lightest." In other words crimped fiber is not only finer but the curvature allows for a lighter weight yarn to be spun.

You can see from Table 3 that finer fiber spins into much lighter garments. Royal alpaca at 19.5 makes into a sweater that weighs 200 grams or 0.441 pounds. A sweater of the same design, made from the mixed piece grade, weighs 600 grams or 1.32 pounds. This is a 300% increase in weight, but the fiber itself is only a little more that 50% coarser.

Luis says, "that there are fleeces, particularly suri, that have low crimp frequency and are fine". He finished his discussion about the relationship between fineness and crimp by saying, "According to our purchasing department the crimpy fleeces are finer than the flat fleeces." In other words, he agrees with Dr. Sumar's conclusions. He concluded his remarks by saying, "As a yarn producer, I think crimp is important for the business."

Table 4 demonstrates that alpaca fiber does not maintain the curvature found in the fleece when it is made into tops. Wool, on the other hand, maintains most of the original curvature in the tops. The increased curvature in wool is a major reason why it makes into lighter garments.

CRIMP STYLE
If you are selecting for crimp in Huacayas and it leads to finer fleeces and there are many styles of crimp, then the question becomes; which style of crimp is best? In sheep, the wool with the most frequent crimp count is often the finest. The style of crimp in sheep is also moderately to highly heritable. In alpaca the style of crimp is variable. There are no bloodlines identified with a particular crimp style or frequency. The following illustration defines the various attributes of crimp.

1. Amplitude is the height of the wave as measured from the crest to the trough.
2. Frequency is the number of crimps for a given measurement, i.e., crimps per inch.
3. Deep crimp is defined as having high amplitude.
4. Bold crimp is low frequency wave that maintains high amplitude.

It is likely that once alpaca breeders decide which style of crimp results in fleeces with the highest textile value that they will be able to fix that particular style. Grupo Inca's genetic improvement project at Paco Marca takes extensive measurements on each alpaca in their herd. They record fineness, curvature, staple length, and fleece weight for each fleece. Once an animal is shorn, and its measurements recorded, the individual fleece is transported to Arequipa where it is sorted for grade. Each grade in the fleece is sorted, weighed and valued at the current market price. This total becomes the textile value of the fleece.

The data that is collected from the Paco Marca herd should allow for correlations to be drawn between particular fleece traits such as curvature (correlated to crimp) or fineness and total fleece value. It will be a small step to visually identify the crimp style of each fleece and determine if there are positive correlations to a particular style of crimp. There may also be negative correlations such as fineness to staple length or fleece weight.

I am working with Alonso Burgos of Paco Marca and geneticists at a major university to analyze the data collected by Alonso and his team. We will also be conducting a similar study of suri lock style as it relates to textile value. The results of this analysis have the potential to revolutionize the selection criteria for Huacaya and Suri.

Copyright 2004 Mike Safley

Source: The Ideal Alpaca Library, IAC Community

Good herd management will make cleaning your llama and alpaca fiber much easier. Keep your fiber animals in a clean pasture and away from weeds and foreign objects that can tangle in the wool. Feed a well-balanced mineral supplement formulated for llamas and alpacas such as the Stillwater Minerals available through Quality Llama Products. Feed clean hay with no weeds and give your animals plenty of room to eat where they will not drop feed on each other.

The best time to clean llama and alpaca wool is on the animal. Try to plan a grooming day a few days prior to shearing. The best tools for grooming if you plan to harvest the wool for spinning are the Kwik and Slick and a good blower. If you need to brush the animal use a soft, gentle brush such as the wool tamer to avoid damage to the wool. Start by blowing as much of the debris as possible from the wool using the circuiteer blower. If you only have a few animals to do the mini-circ will work fine. If you are doing a large herd and time is of the essence the larger circ II will work faster as it has twice the blowing power of the mini circ.

After blowing the main garbage out of the wool, use the kwik and slick to remove the rest of the garbage. With a crimp tool, beat the wool in a downward stroke starting at the top of the back and working down. This will create a static charge to the wool and when you lift the wool the garbage will fall out. Fluff the wool frequently as you beat it. Quality Llama Products offers a great video demonstrating this process which is available free of charge on a loan basis.

Cleaning the wool prior to shearing will extend the life of the shears and make the wool much easier to handle after it is removed from the animal. Once the wool is removed from the animal spread it out on a clean smooth surface. Remove the outer edges if they are damaged or muddy and using your fingers or tweezers handpick any debris that you can from the wool. The wool can now be stored or carded if you wish and then washed after it is spun.

If you prefer to wash your wool prior to spinning, was it in a container that can be drained outside and do not drain it through the plumbing as the fiber can badly clog the plumbing system. Use a mild soap such as liquid ivory or woolite and very hot water. Fill the tub with very hot water and add about three times as much soap as you would if doing laundry. Put the wool in a tub (fill the tub before placing the wool in the water as you do not want to run the water on top of the wool) and let it soak for about an hour. Do not agitate, as this will cause the wool to felt. After soaking place the wool in a colander or some sort of container to drain. Again take care not to agitate the fibers. Rinse in hot water and drain again. Let the fiber dry on towels or place in a plastic basket where the air can circulate around the fiber to dry. I find that a great time saver with this method of washing fiber is a net bag such as out net harvest bag or a net laundry bag. This allows you to move the fiber from the container to the rinse easily and without agitation and can also be used to dry the fiber.

You can also use the washing machine to wash your wool but try to have it drain outside rather than through the plumbing if possible. Using very hot water fill the washer with soap and water. Place the fleece in the washer and let it soak for about an hour. (Do not turn the washer on). Turn the washer to the spin cycle and spin the water out of the fleece. Lift the fleece out of the water and wipe the inside of the washer. Fill the washer with very hot clean water and put the fleece back in to soak for about thirty minute. Turn washer to spin cycle and spin the water out. If fleece is still dirty or needs more rinsing repeat this procedure. Spread the fleece out on a window screen or in a plastic basket where it can dry with air circulation. If fleece is especially dirty you may want to add about one half cup of white vinegar to the last rinse.

Some things that will damage fiber are:

1. Moths and carpet beetles that chew on the fiber
2. Water damage due to leaks or high humidity that cause the fiber to mildew
3. Bright sun can cause the fiber to bleach and become brittle.

To prevent fiber damage wait until your fiber is completely dry and store it in a waterproof container with a tight fitting lid such as an inexpensive plastic storage box. Add a couple of cedar blocks or herbal moth repellents of your choice to prevent damage from insects. Store in a closet or room away from direct sunlight.

Nancy Chlarson - Quality Llama Products, Inc.

We attended an alpaca show and met a most amazing person. Harry the rope maker was busy "spinning" wonderful lead ropes using a Taravia he had designed and made. The tool was designed and used in ancient Egypt over 3000 years ago. The Mexican horsehair rope makers use it much the same way today. Harry took the process one step further and is now making the tools to create yarn and rope from llama and alpaca wool.

Two people can use the taravia to create fine wool yarn for knitting or one person can make rope from roving with only the help of a fence or post for an anchor. Rope can be fine or up to an inch thick by plying several strands together. One end of the fiber is anchored to a post or fence and the other end hooked to the taravia. The Taravia is then spun to twist the fiber into a fine rope. Several of these fine ropes can then be plyed by following the same procedure and spinning the taravia in the opposite direction.

I was especially impressed with the quality of Harry's work. The taravia are available in a variety of hardwoods and all are hand crafted, sanded and waxed to a high sheen. Harry obviously knows his way around the woodshop! Harry has generously offered to make these tools available to the Quality Llama Products, Inc. customers and has several sets on hand ready to ship. If you are in the market for a fun craft that the whole family can enjoy together and that will make use of all qualities of llama and alpaca wool this is it. The finished product will be something you can be proud of for years to come and while making rope your family can make treasured memories.

Nancy Chlarson - QualityLlama Products, Inc

The felting needle is a special needle about three and a half inches long that has reverse barbs along its shank.

They are used to compact and tangle fibers creating the felted look without the soap, water, and mess of traditional felting. They are very sharp and very brittle and this is not a craft for young children. However, children twelve or older should have no problem with them. The needles can be used individually or as a set in the felting needle punch. This is a wooden handle that locks in four to five needles at one time for faster felting on larger projects.

You will want to use a large sponge or piece of foam rubber for a working surface. It is best to use a piece three to four inches thick so that the needle is unlikely to punch thru to your leg or the table. Begin by rolling a stack of washed wool on your foam pad and just practice different techniques with the needle. Repeated stabbing in one area will create an ever deepening hole, stabs close together in a line will create a sunken line, and needling all over in an area will reduce and firm the area. Add colors and designs by stacking more wool in various areas and "stabbing it into place". You can also needle scraps of colored yarn into your piece to create lines.

Complete instructions for making a series of projects are included in our book, The Felting Needle by Ayala Talpai. The book includes four felting needles. Extra needles and the five needle punch are also available from Quality Llama Products, Inc. We also now carry a felting needle kit that includes instructions, needles and a supply of sheep wool for practice.

Felting for Fashion

Felting is the technique of treating wool so badly that it becomes beautiful. Felt is a non-woven fabric made from animal fleece. It is created using hot water, soap, and agitation. Once felted it is impossible to "unfelt" the fabric. The wool fibers have small scales, which cause the fibers to tangle and cling to each other during the felting process. Once felted, the material can be shaped and molded into a wide variety of products including hats, sweaters, scarves, and toys. Various colors can be felted together to create wall hangings and patterns in clothing without the use of seams.

Quality Llama Products, Inc. carries several books on felting that include such varied projects as hats, slippers, puppets and stuffed toys. Felting is a simple technique that can be mastered by young children and is a fun, safe activity for the entire family. Felting is an inexpensive hobby as it does not require any special tools or supplies to make beautiful projects.

Locker Hooking

Locker hooking uses raw wool and mess to make wall hangings, rugs, and bags. It is a great way to use up scraps and the not quite perfect wool and is easy enough for anyone to master. The material is similar to a hook rug canvas and generally has large, quarter inch holes. The needle is about six inches long and has a hook on one end and a large eye on the other end. Scrap yarn is threaded thru the eye for tying the wool in place. Raw wool is held under the canvas and using the hook end of the needle, pull a loop of wool up thru the holes and then pull the needle thru the loop. The yarn will hold the wool in place and prevent it from pulling back thru the hole. After the piece is hooked it can be left as is, felted, or brushed for varying effects. There is an excellent book on locker hooking available from Quality Llama Products, Inc and we also have beginning locker hooking kits as well as all the supplies you need.

Rope Making

The taravia is an ancient Egyptian leather spinning tool and is used today in Mexico to manufacture horsehair rope. Our modern taravia are handmade from hardwood and are sold in a set of three different sizes. This simple tool can be used to make everything from fine jewelry cords to heavy horse ropes. The material you used and the number of times you ply it will determine the size of the finished product.

To make ropes you will need roving, yarn, or poly cording. You need an anchor point for one end of the material. This can be a tree, a post, a doorknob, or a hook in the wall. Hook two pieces of roving or yarn to the base point and the other ends are hooked to the taravia. Once all cords are attached move away from the anchor point the length of your project and begin to rotate the taravia clockwise. Rotate until the pieces are wrapped and almost hard to the feel. Tie this piece to a second anchor point and make two more cords using the same technique. Next you can take these three cords and using the same process wrap them around each other counter clockwise. Tie off each end or attach a snap to one end and you have a rope! You can also take these lengths of rope and weave them into rugs or wall hangings. It takes some coordination to get the hang of the spinning and to learn how to keep the right tension but in no time at all you can be making your llama and alpaca wool into beautiful lead ropes, hatbands, or jewelry depending on the size and weight of material used.

If you and your friends would like to learn the ancient art of rope making first hand classes are available. Eight people or more can request a class in your area by calling Harry Hudlow at 509-787-3363. He would be happy to come to your area for a one day hands on class. Cost will vary with class size and location.

Rug Weaving

There are many ways to make woven rugs that do not require a lot of special equipment. The round wheel rug loom is the simplest loom available. You can use it to make rugs using the rope you create with the taravia, wool mill ends, yarn, or even raw wool that can be felted after it is woven. The round beginners loom can be used easily by children as young as four or five or can be used by seasoned weavers to make unique patterns and designs. Even the "non-mechanical" person can easily make simple looms from materials found around the house.It is limited only by your imagination. As your skills increase you may want to move up to the rigid heddle loom or the table top loom which can be used to make fabric in unlimited styles and designs. Quality Llama Products, Inc carries several books on weaving. One of our most popular books is the book Small Looms in Action which offers several projects for beginning weavers as well as instructions for making your own small looms. Another excellent book on weaving is The Ashford Book of Rigid Heddle Weaving.

Hand Spinning

Spinning is the most well known use of wool. Spinning can be done on a spinning wheel, with a drop spindle, or with a support spindle. It is the process of twisting strands of wool so that they lock together in a continuous strand. The resulting yarn can be used for weaving, knitting, crocheting, or other types of craft projects. For the beginning spinner the drop spindle or the support spindle offer excellent ways to learn the craft with the least financial investment. Drop spindles use the law of gravity to help create the spun fiber. Used by ancient shepherds, some form of drop spindle can be found in nearly every culture throughout history. You can create your own or purchase beautiful, hand made spindles in a wide variety of sizes and styles. The support spindle is similar to the drop spindle however, as the name implies, it is generally supported in some way rather than dropped. While drop spindles by nature general require that you be standing to make them work correctly, the support spindle can easily be used while seated. Again, support spindles can be as simple as a bowl or as complex as our precision travel spindle. An excellent guide to learn to use the drop spindle and the support spindle is the book Spindle Spinning from Novice to Expert found in the Quality Llama Products, Inc. catalog.

Quality Llama Products, Inc. also offers two different drop spindle kits. The basic kit has wool, spindle, and written instructions. The deluxe kit also includes an instructional video for the more visual learner.

Spinning wheels are available in a wide variety of styles and sizes. We prefer the Ashford spinning wheels for ease of use and its ability to ply and make novelty yarns. The traditional wheel is a great beginners wheel but is also preferred by many advanced spinners. If you travel a lot with your wheel the Joy spinning wheel folds into a compact package and can be placed in the cordura carry bag sold separately for ease of transport. The bag is well padded and has multiple pockets for taking all of your tools and supplies to class or on a trip.

Spinning classes are often available from craft centers at local colleges or thru the local spinning gild. To find a spinning gild in your area call your local chamber of commerce or county extension office. Spinning with a spinning wheel is very relaxing and once mastered, can be done while watching television or enjoying a day on the beach. There are many excellent books on spinning as well as some outstanding videos. Quality Llama Products, Inc. also has videos dealing with dying and weaving wool once it has been spun so that you can create an unlimited number and variety of projects. For production spinning, Quality Llama Products, Inc. also offers electronic spinners.

Weaving

Weaving can be as simple as inter-weaving rag strips into a rug to inter-lacing fine silk into elegant fabric. When purchasing a loom you need to think about the type of fabric you want to create. The loom will be identified by a size specification, such as 24 inch. This indicates the maximum width of the fabric the loom is capable of creating. The loom may also be identified by the number of heddles. The more heddles, the more threads you can string onto the loom and the more intricate a pattern you can create. Many people are intimidated by weaving as it has its own vocabulary and appears to be complicated. In reality, the hardest part of weaving is learning the vocabulary. If you start with a simple rigid heddle loom and understand the basic concept you will quickly be able to move to a larger four or eight heddle loom. Quality Llama Products, Inc. carries an outstanding book for beginning weavers title, Learning to Weave. This book begins with basic vocabulary and is full of detailed diagrams and photos in an easy to understand format. We highly recommend it for those ready to move to a full size loom.

Craft Stands

Quality Llama Products, Inc. offers two styles of craft stands for your hand work projects. The solid oak e-z stitch lap stand is made for doing needle work using both hands. The base is arranged so that you can sit on it to hold it firmly in place. 12 inch capacity can be increased to 22 inches using the adapter bars sold separately. Light weight and portable it makes a perfect travel companion.

The floor stand is for larger projects. Includes a 16" scroll frame with adjustable height and angle that pivots 360 degrees. Purchase just the stand or the complete set which includes optional supply box, graph holder, and storage bin. This is a perfect stand for locker hooking and needlepoint.

Nancy Chlarson - Quality Llama Products, Inc.

If you have not sheared yet, taking some time to clean the fiber before shearing can save a lot of effort later. First, decide on your show fleeces. Pick these alpacas clean. Do not blow them out. For all other animals, use a blower or vacuum to the fleeces while still on the alpaca.
While shearing, sort your fleeces into 3 bags- prime blanket(1sts), neck (2nds), leg and belly (3rds).

Once shearing is completed, you will have piles of bags. Now is the time to analyze what you have, and what to do next.
First identify and pull out your show fleeces. These should be the best of the best. You want to carefully skirt these fleeces to get them ready for shows. Set them aside until you have time to work with them.

The rest of your fiber is used to make money. All the fiber can be used. You just need to analyze the best use for each part or type.
CRIMP: Good crimp will give loftiness and body to your end product. Deep bold is best for knitwear. Wave or no crimp is best for drape.

SURI VS. HUACAYA: Suri is silky and best for lightweight garments with drape, not meant for high level of warmth. Think high fashion. Huacaya is a soft replacement for sheeps wool. The more crimp, the more loft, and the warmer the end product.

TENSILE STRENGTH: This is the amount of pulling a fiber can stand before it breaks. If the fiber breaks easily, your end product will shed and not last as long.
LUSTER: This is the light reflective quality of the fleece. It is usually associated with suri fleece, but can also be found in a fine quality huacaya. End products will look brighter and have shine to them.

HAND or HANDLE: This is the tactile "feel" of all the fiber characteristics combined. A good hand will make an end product more desirable to the consumer, and command a premium price.

CONTAMINATION: Impurities are present in all fleeces, after all, these are pasture animals. Skirting can remove most contamination. Commercial processing is more tolerant of these impurities, more than hand spinners. The cleaner your fiber, the cleaner your end products.

PRIME BLANKET: This is the best part of the alpaca. It has the most uses. Other fiber characteristics may limit your uses.
NECK: The neck can be as soft as the blanket, just shorter. If it is not too much shorter, it can often be combined with the blanket.

LEG and BELLY: The coarsest part of the alpaca, it is good for batting, stuffing, and felting.

MICRON: The micron is the thickness of the individual fiber. The finer the micron, the softer the end product, the higher a price you can command. But note that the handle can mean more to the end product than just micron. The preparation of the fleece for show, fiber co-op, mini-mill, or fiber artist is best demonstrated. Hands on work is best done in a class.

Check your local show listings for a hands-on class. If you have specific questions, check our website:www.alpacas-r-us.com for general information, email to solartsalpacaranch@yahoo.com for Blair's upcoming classes, or call 503 538-5673 for fiber processing information. Starry Nights Mill offers full processing, and answers for preparation questions.