About Alpaca
Originally created by crossing two wild animals the Vicuna and the Gauanco-
the uniqueness of the "alpaca" that emerged has been worshipped by
the indigenous peoples of the alti-plano in South America as a gift from the
Gods. Known for over six thousand years as the 'Fibre of the Gods' alpaca is
a warm, soft, light-weight and lustrous fibre celebrated for its hypoallergenic
qualities. Today alpaca fibre is produced throughout the world, with large
national herds in Australia and the United States . Alpaca's versatility, wide
natural colour range and inherent softness makes this a very exclusive and
much sought after material which deservedly holds a unique place on the catwalks
of the world stage.
Here in the UK there are now upwards of 17,000 alpacas spread out over farms
and smallholdings from the tip of Scotland right down to Cornwall . Each year
these animals are all sheared, leaving many individuals with a difficult decision
about what to do with the fleece. As the UK can no longer boast of a commercial
textile industry, spinners, weavers and knitters must be sourced from the traditional
regions, and very often coaxed into experimenting with this unusual fibre.
Everyone I have ever challenged to work with alpaca has thoroughly enjoyed
the process and have been thrilled with the outcome of their work.
Spinning Alpaca
Alpaca fibre is wonderful to hand spin and it does not need to be washed before
spinning. Most handspinners, when spinning alpaca, do their spinning and plying
first and then wash the finished skein of yarn in tepid water. The only real
preperation that needs to be done is to shake as much dry dust out as possilbe,
and remove any stray pieces of foligage. When buying alpac a fleece from alpaca
owners you fleece should be free of foilage, but finer fleeces tend to attract
vegetation, and it is advisable t o hand pick these bits out before spinning.
Alpaca can be characterised as:
Luxurious - Soft and Silky to the touch, with no 'itch factor'
Lightweight- Hollow core to the fibre means alpaca is light
to wear
Warm- Hollow core makes alpaca a fantastic insulator
Durable - less inclined to 'pill' due to long staple length
Washable - alpaca can be handwashed and then dried flat
Colourful- natural alpaca comes in 22 natural colours from
cream through to black, but if brighter colours are required it also absorbs
dye incredibly well to give radiant colours
When washing your completed hand spun yarn, please remember that alpaca is
a natural fibre that does felt if wet, hot and agitated. Ensure that you fill
the sink with tepid water and a mild detergent, allow the yarn to soak for
10 minutes without moving it. Dry the yarn slowly and naturally. Placing alpaca
above a radiator, boiler or aga will force dry the fibre and can lead to a
change in the handle- drying the fibres out too much resulting a brittle touch.
Knitting Alpaca
If you're a newbie to knitting alpaca, and desperate to
get some yarn on your needles it's important to decide on how you would like
your final object to be before choosing a pattern. We sell 2ply, 4ply, Double
Knit and Aran weight knitting yarns, all of which very in nature and texture.
Be careful to choose a yarn weight appropriate to the object you're knitting.
As some rough guidelines we would recommend:
Obviously just because we choose to do it this way doesn't mean that it's
the right way: your only limitation is your creative ability. I have seen some
amazing knitwear produced by knitters purchasing our yarn who have used it
in ways that we don't. A lady recently completed a stunning aran weight sweater-
an amazing piece of work in a yarn worthy of the hours of time put into the
piece. I have also seen wonderful hats done in 4ply and 2ply ladies sweaters
(not for the faint hearted knitter).
Colour
All of our yarns are 100% natural. One of the greatest features of the alpaca
is that is comes in such a wide spectrum of natural colours. From white through
to black with greys, browns and fawns in between. Although all coming off the
same breed of animal, the texture and handle of the different colours can sometimes
vary greatly. The white and cream yarns are usually the softest due to far
more years selective breeding in South America . However, there are exceptions
to this, and at Toft Alpacas we specialise in breeding top quality brown animals
(check out our credentials in the BAS National Show Ring 2006/2007). Our Baby
Alpaca' blends are guaranteed to be incredibly soft and slippy, as these batches
only contain the softest and youngest fleeces regardless of whether they are
grey, black or cream.
Tension
Due to the softness and soapy texture of alpaca, some knitters find that in
order to get the correct gauge they move onto a smaller needle size than recommended
for the weight. If you are aware that you generally are quite a loose knitter
then I would advise doing so. ALWAYS check your tension before you begin a
project because you are using a new natural material and it will not always
respond in as unformed way as mass produced and computer-spun acrylic.
Needles
In Toft Alpacas knitting Kits we provide wooden needles. The give in the natural
needle, in comparison to the steel needle, seems to give you greater control
and pleasure over knitting with the yarn. This is in no way essential, it's
just a nice thing to have when knitting natural'- in fact most of the Toft
Alpacas knitters use steel needles. With some of the baby alpaca yarns they
have been spun loosely in order to maintain the handle and softness of the
yarn. With these some knitters advise using a blunter needle to minimise the
chances of the tip splitting the yarn.
Washing
As you're knitting with a natural fibre it is important to handwash your knitting
after you've finished. I would recommend using a delicate/natural detergent,
something as easy to get hold of as Woolite (which can be bought at all supermarkets)
is fine. Fill your sink with tepid water and allow your item to soak for 10-15
mins. After you have rinsed you can gently spin the item in the washing machine
to remove excess water. Dry flat to avoid any misshaping. I would recommend
allowing your item to dry slowly- don't force dry on top of an aga or boiler.
The handle of alpaca seems to alter when it is dried out too fast- it almost
goes brittle to touch. Patience is the key to retaining the buttery soft feeling.
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