Turning Fleece Into Yarn
The hard way and the harder way
One of the most common questions we get when people visit the alpacas is, “What do you do with their fleece?” After that big annual haircut, there are still several steps to putting all that fluff to use.
To the Mill!
When the alpacas are sheared, their fleece is grouped into three different cuts. The first cut is the best fiber, called the blanket, which covers the alpacas’ torsos. The fiber here is the longest, so it has the best staple length for spinning into yarn. That fiber we take to a local-ish fiber mill to be turned into yarn.
To prepare the fleece for the mill, we have to do a process called skirting, which means picking out as much of the hay, burrs, dirt, etc. out of the blanket as we can. It takes a lot of effort. The good news is this summer we have two years’ worth of fleece to skirt because we did not take fleece to the mill last year and procrastinated on skirting. Here’s a video from our seldom-used YouTube channel:
After we skirt the fleece and take it to the mill, the fiber is washed, carded, and spun into 2-ply worsted weight yarn.
At home, we use the seconds and thirds (trimmed off the head, neck, and legs) to make dryer balls. I have a lot of fleece on stand-by for that purpose because after a year of success, my dryer ball process stopped working and I need to refine my technique before this year’s market days.
That’s the hard way to turn fleece into yarn. We send the blankets off to be processed this way. The harder way is to do it all by hand instead of using someone else’s labor and machines. Sometimes a bit of fluff comes back from the mill and I can work with that, or I can use the seconds or thirds.
Spinning by Hand
I had a short essay about my struggles with learning to spin, “Spinning on a Prayer” in Geez Issue 67 “Craft at the End of the World (By the way, Geez is folding, which makes me so sad. I have a flash piece forthcoming in their final issue. 😭) Making yarn by hand can take a lot more time for someone, like me, who is not especially skilled or quick with the spindle.
After skirting the fleece, a wash (with a special detergent) is in order. I use two sides of our disinfected sink, one for soaking and one for rinsing to get this done, then let the fleece dry in the sun.
Next comes carding. This process uses two wire combs to fluff the fleece up. This process untangles the fibers and makes them run basically in the same direction. That will help the fibers twist and stick together during spinning.
Regrettably, I have not learned how to use my spinning wheel yet, but I am decent with a drop spindle. That took a lot of practice and swearing, but once you get the hang of it it’s pretty fun. I embedded a video I found helpful below. I really got into the groove of spinning with a spindle after watching Respect the Spindle by Abby Franquemont. The book is wonderful, but the video (which I got through the library) feels like being in a workshop and helped me troubleshoot some issues.
When spinning yarn, you use the spindle or spinning wheel to build up energy in the fiber which, when released, causes the fibers to twist and bind around each other. I find it fascinating to watch up close. Then, to ply the yarn, you repeat the process with two strands of yarn, twisting them together in the opposite direction than they were spun individually (i.e. if the yarn is spun clockwise, ply the yarn counterclockwise).
From there, the yarn is wound on a device called a niddy-noddy, which helps calculate the yardage of the yarn. I give the yarn a soak on the niddy-noddy to help set the twist and wash it again, then hang it to dry. It sounds simple, but it’s a lot of work.
That, my friends, is why yarn made using fiber from animals who you can actually meet is so expensive. There’s the animal care, shearing, skirting, washing, carding, spinning, plying, and washing again. It makes the end result so much more special than acrylic yarn bought at the craft store (which has its purpose too!) and that’s even before you get to the special characteristics of alpaca fleece (so soft and warm and flame-resistant!).
If you want to help skirt fleece this year, I might let you! I pay in seltzer water and alpaca snuggles.
When I was learning how to spin, I had this great idea that I would practice by spinning merino wool to make gifts for my grandparents. My first two skeins were so bulky they were not long enough to make anything. They still sit in the window above my desk. Eventually, I learned to spin thinner yarn and got those scarves and ear warmers knit while watching all the corny Christmas movies. Here’s some of my work as it progressed.
So do you now make the yarn now or take it to be done? I was a bit confused after reading all the work it takes.