Processing your fiber

There are many, many things you can do with your alpaca fleece but please don’t just stick it in storage. If you don’t plan to use it, sell it wholesale to someone who will. At least you will recoup some of your shearing expenses.

Processing your fleece is not difficult. First, determine what you want the end result to be – used for hand spinning, mill processed rovings or yarn, or for show. Regardless of method, you will want to skirt your fleeces.

• Skirting for show is the most time consuming. The fleece should be kept intact as much as possible. Construct a skirting screen using wire mesh or snow fence material with a 1” hole in between the mesh. Attach the mesh to a wood frame approximately 2.5x5’ in size. Turn the fleece so that the cut side is down on the screen. Gently shake remaining dust and carefully hand-pick remaining debris from the fleece. Remove any guard hair, or fiber that is not consistent with the rest of the fleece (i.e., areas where the character is not quite as nice and/or shorter pieces). Be careful not to remove too much of the fleece because part of the show score is determine by the weight of the fleece. Remove any “second cuts” created when the shearer cuts over one spot a second time. Once you are satisfied with the fleece, carefully fold the fleece cut-side in and place it back in the bag. If you feel that the neck or upper leg fiber warrants “prime” status, skirt that as well and place it in the bag with the prime fleece. You are now ready for the show!

• Skirting for hand processing is similar to that of the show fleece; however, it’s not necessary to keep the fleece intact. I usually pull large chunks out to work on, and stick them back into the bag when I’m satisfied with it. Once skirted, the fleece can be hand or drum carded at home. While it takes much longer to hand process your fleeces, you will feel a huge sense of accomplishment and thoroughly enjoy spinning yarn from your own herd!

• While alpacas have no grease in their fleece, and it can be carded directly from the animal, you may prefer to wash the fleeces before carding. Fill your washer or a large tub with hot water. Once full, add detergent – this can be anything from wool wash to shampoo. Place part of your fleece loosely in a mesh laundry bag and slowly submerse it in the hot water. Let the fiber soak for at least 30 minutes, longer if extremely dirty. Slowly remove the bag of fiber taking care not to let the water rush out too quickly which will create felting. Repeat the wash as many times as necessary. Once the fleece is clean, run cool water and submerse it for 30 minutes to soak. Slowly remove the fleece, gently remove it from the bag and lay it out to dry. I use my skirting table which allows airflow from all sides. Once the fiber is partially dry, pull it apart further to keep it from felting. This makes it easier to card once dry.

• Skirting for mill processing is the easiest process. You will still want to remove sand and any larger debris, but the mill equipment will remove much of the debris and short cuts. Not all mills will process your individual fleeces and many are not accomplished with luxury fibers such as alpaca. Make sure to check references prior to trusting them with your precious fleeces!