So, Vick and I have been discussing the Cluckin' "A" Critter Farm, LLC and the turn of events we have experienced from this time last year, to this very minute, as we await the New Year. We discussed the many challenges we have met, the changes we have made for the better and what we should plan for in the up coming year. One thing we will do is separate the farm blog from politics. Since I am a writer at heart, even before an old fashioned hard luck farmer...I will devote a separate blog to my political views or rants and raves!!! This blog will return to our farm content and the humorous occurrences we encounter along the way.
Vick says she doesn't enjoy reading it anymore because of my rants, so I'm sure there are many others who have become disappointed in the lost farm blog, so I will create another blog entry for my political rants. I shall call it "A Pissed Off Patriot"...because that is exactly what I am... A truly Pissed Off Patriot, that must vent about the atrocities of our politicians in office AND OUR FAILING GOVERNMENT! click on the link above and bookmark it...follow the blog too, THEN read my view on the current governmental mess!
NOW...Back to the farm and what's a goin' on here... We are processing fiber during the slack time (which isn't much right now). Alpaca fiber! Vick is having a ball and is turning out skeins of alpaca yarn that is second to none anywhere, as far as I am concerned. I'm quite proud of her accomplishments you know! She has mastered her watercolor painting and now is turning out beautiful yarn on a spinning wheel.
Of course...as you all know, we have three Alpacas which we shear in the spring, as soon as it is warm enough to remove their fiber. We then process their fiber by cleaning it, dying it to Vick's desired colors using all natural dyes, carding it into eight by fifteen inch bats which have all the fibers running in the same direction and then pulling roving chunks and spinning it into a single strand yard. After Vick has two bobbins filled with single ply yarn, she put the two bobbins on her lazy Kate stand and ply's the two into a finished yarn which she wets, and hangs with weights applied to set the twist for a day, after which she knots the skein of beautifully finished yarn. Below are a series of step-by-step pictures of the procedure.
Vick says she doesn't enjoy reading it anymore because of my rants, so I'm sure there are many others who have become disappointed in the lost farm blog, so I will create another blog entry for my political rants. I shall call it "A Pissed Off Patriot"...because that is exactly what I am... A truly Pissed Off Patriot, that must vent about the atrocities of our politicians in office AND OUR FAILING GOVERNMENT! click on the link above and bookmark it...follow the blog too, THEN read my view on the current governmental mess!
NOW...Back to the farm and what's a goin' on here... We are processing fiber during the slack time (which isn't much right now). Alpaca fiber! Vick is having a ball and is turning out skeins of alpaca yarn that is second to none anywhere, as far as I am concerned. I'm quite proud of her accomplishments you know! She has mastered her watercolor painting and now is turning out beautiful yarn on a spinning wheel.
Of course...as you all know, we have three Alpacas which we shear in the spring, as soon as it is warm enough to remove their fiber. We then process their fiber by cleaning it, dying it to Vick's desired colors using all natural dyes, carding it into eight by fifteen inch bats which have all the fibers running in the same direction and then pulling roving chunks and spinning it into a single strand yard. After Vick has two bobbins filled with single ply yarn, she put the two bobbins on her lazy Kate stand and ply's the two into a finished yarn which she wets, and hangs with weights applied to set the twist for a day, after which she knots the skein of beautifully finished yarn. Below are a series of step-by-step pictures of the procedure.
Luke's Fiber... Vick dyes it with all natural dyes like beet juice....
Dyed fiber....
Dyed with Kool-Aid....
This fiber is partially carded by hand...
Our hand carders...
This is hand carded and ready to spin...
More we were carding by hand...
This is our drum carder which make carding fast and easy...
Here is an 8 x 16 inch batt ready to be pulled apart into roving and then spun...
Vick pulling roving...
Vick spinning the alpaca roving into spun yarn.
More spinning...
Here Vick is drafting the roving into thread sized yarn...
Look how uniform.......WOW
The plyed yarn coming off of the Lazy Kate as Vick winds it onto the kniddy-Noddy......
Wetted, weighted and hanging to set the twist in the yarn....
Here is the knotted skein of yarn...
Vick will be selling these in the hospice gift shop this spring...
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