Hi everyone.  I have been busy working on this new website and blog. I plan to be more consistent on posting now that I have converted to this site.  I made a video on how I make art batts with my standard baby brother drumcarder.  Please watch and let me know what you think in the comments.

I love to spin yarn from my alpaca's fiber. Before spinning I have to prep my fiber. I usually card all of my fiber. I do it different ways depending on what yarn I want to spin.  My default spin is usually 2 ply - dk weight.

​Before carding is done I pick open the fibers.

Brother now makes this same picker, which I am a dealer of  Brother drum carders. If your interested in purchasing it, click this link.  Swing Picker  Free shipping anywhere in the USA.
Here is a collage of the fiber drying in the trays, then picked open, and finally put through our dye lot carder.

​ Then I either spin from a cloud or small batts.

After filling two bobbin with singles, I then ply them with my Roberta Espinner.

​Then I skein the yarn and wash to set the twist.

​I have been hand-processing my Alpaca's fiber since 2006. I thought I would share with you how I do it.  Alpaca fiber does not have any lanolin in it, but it does have a lot of dust and dirt from them rolling in their dust bowls as you can see in the picture below.

​During the shearing process we collect the fiber in three different bags. The main blanket, is tagged  with the alpaca's name and number 1. The neck and some of the other fiber as number 2 in a separate bag. Then the leg fibers go in a bag numbered 3.

​I take the number one bags and place on my skirting table. From this I pick out any hay, pickers or whatever might be in the fiber. I also pull out any shorter fibers. As you can see in these pictures my alpacas fiber is very dirty from rolling in their dust bowls.

​After skirting we use a homemade "blowout box" and a leaf blower to blow out most of the dirt and dust. This helps with the next step of washing.

​I place the fiber into laundry bags that you can close up with a drawstring.  Depending on how much fiber I usually have it separated into 3 laundry bags. Now it is ready for a soak. I like to use Orvus Paste. It is a non PH shampoo (typically sold in farm supply stores). Horse owners like to use this to wash their horse with.  You may also purchase smaller quantities in quilt shops as it is used by quilters for washing their quilts. It also can be used to wash your delicate clothes. A little Orvus Paste goes a long way. I scoop out a half a ladle for a full wash load for my fiber.

​I then take it out of the bags and place in this herb/seed dryer trays.  This is hanging in my basement with my setup for washing and processing the alpaca fiber.

​So this is how I do it. I have never felted any of my fiber by washing with hot water. If you were to agitate with the hot water and soap, then yes you could have a felted mess. If you try this, please remember no agitation allowed!

Hi everyone. 
Gary & I are excited about our new website with the store and blog. I will be posting more blog posts about the ranch, alpacas, Maremma sheepdogs, fiber arts and many how to posts.  Let me know what you think of our new website?