# Spinning- Alpaca



## nittineedles (Apr 14, 2011)

My latest spinning project:
100% Alpaca
undyed
116g (4.1 oz)
304 m (333 yd) 

It was pretty dirty. I must have picked out at least 10g of bits and twigs before spinning but I'm not complaining. A friend gave me four bags of alpaca rovings for free. One down. Three to go.


----------



## mama879 (Jan 27, 2011)

Very cool are you going to dye it? Nice friend to give you so much did you mix with other fiber or just the Alpaca? What are you going to make out of your wonderfully spun yarn?


----------



## nittineedles (Apr 14, 2011)

I'm going to leave it undyed. Yes, she is very nice. It's 100% alpaca. It's going in my Etsy shop and if I still have it in May, it will go on my craft market table.


----------



## wordancer (May 4, 2011)

Such a lovely cream color, really nice.


----------



## Reba1 (Feb 5, 2012)

Gorgeousness!


----------



## luree (Feb 21, 2014)

That is gorgeous. I know it feels good. How those little animals can get so messed up with hay and grass.


----------



## Cdambro (Dec 30, 2013)

That is so pretty. Looks super soft.


----------



## Teardrop (Oct 23, 2011)

That is beautiful. Nicely spun. I raise Alpaca's and sheep and the trick to keeping crud out of their fiber is how you feed and keeping things like thistle and burdock out of the field. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do with the dirt. They like to dust and if there is mud they will roll in that too. Some seem to stay cleaner than others.


----------



## sbeth53 (Mar 29, 2011)

Beautiful yarn :sm01:


----------



## lovey (Nov 11, 2011)

:sm02:


----------



## alpaca Issy (Oct 11, 2012)

It's really lovely and very well spun. I have sveral bags of black alpaca waiting to be carded and spun - I also have some black cria that I sorted - ended up getting rid of a lot of it - so much bracken and muck in it - but hopefully can now get on and spin!!


----------



## jenjoyo (Sep 21, 2011)

I've been spinning some alpaca for the first time. It's great! Very easy to work with.


----------



## Spooly (Oct 22, 2011)

Beautifully spun yarn.


----------



## nittineedles (Apr 14, 2011)

jenjoyo said:


> I've been spinning some alpaca for the first time. It's great! Very easy to work with.


This was my first time spinning alpaca. Someone told me it was difficult to spin and very slippery so I put it off for quite a while. Now I know it's not any more"difficult" than dog hair, I can spin up some of the bags I've had stuffed in a closet for a couple of years.


----------



## nittineedles (Apr 14, 2011)

Teardrop said:


> That is beautiful. Nicely spun. I raise Alpaca's and sheep and the trick to keeping crud out of their fiber is how you feed and keeping things like thistle and burdock out of the field. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do with the dirt. They like to dust and if there is mud they will roll in that too. Some seem to stay cleaner than others.


Fortunately, this alpaca had already been washed and carded into rovings when it was given to me. Another someone told me alpaca is easier to spin if I don't wash it. Is that true? None of the alpaca in my closet has been carded but it looks pretty clean. I doubt it's been washed as it was all purchased at various fibre fairs.


----------



## alpaca Issy (Oct 11, 2012)

I don't wash mine before I spin it - I have bought some machine carded that was a real treat to spin - but I generally tent to ply it with something else - merino - blue faced Leicester. Once it's plied and skeined - it's washed very gently - then knitted!


----------



## nittineedles (Apr 14, 2011)

alpaca Issy said:


> I don't wash mine before I spin it - I have bought some machine carded that was a real treat to spin - but I generally tent to ply it with something else - merino - blue faced Leicester. Once it's plied and skeined - it's washed very gently - then knitted!


So, no washing and card with some wool. I always ply my handspun and wash the skein. Thanks. I'm looking forward to working on it.


----------



## kiwirose (Aug 19, 2011)

Wow! That is beautifully spun and such a lovely cream colour. It looks so soft that I want to reach into my screen and touch it.


----------



## nellig (May 10, 2016)

Oooh. How nice. It looks lovely.


----------



## marianikole (Aug 29, 2011)

looks so beautiful. You did great


----------



## RobynMay (May 14, 2012)

Oh That is such a beautiful skein. Well done!
I try and spin straight from the raw fleece. I love it when the fleece is clean-ish though and have tweezers to get the really fine bits of vm ( vegetable matter) out.


----------



## desireeross (Jun 2, 2013)

Beautifully spun


----------

