To start off 2014 I, Momma, want to share with you 20 questions and 20 answers about alpacas. These are questions we get asked all the time. I’m going in reverse order from a question or two to the most frequently asked.
#20 – Why should I wear alpaca instead of wool? Alpaca fiber doesn’t contain lanolin like sheep’s wool. Each hair shaft’s hollow core deters dust mites which cause asthma and allergies. Alpaca is 3 times warmer and 7 times stronger than wool.
Vannie’s 2013 “blanket” before we begin to process it.
#19 – What’s so great about alpaca fiber? Alpaca fiber is as soft as cashmere, requires no chemical agents for processing, light weight and alpacas come in a variety of natural colors. Alpaca has a low absorbency rate and superior wicking ability.
A photo of a few of our alpacas shows we have a brown, white, black, light grey, dark grey and a fawn.
#18 – What do you do with alpacas? Alpacas are raised for their luxury fiber. In the United States ranchers consider them exotic livestock. At Cliff House we shear, skirt, spin their hair into yarn; and knit, crochet and weave our alpaca’s yarn into clothing, blankets and rugs.
Kirstin spinning our alpaca’s fiber into yarn. We’ll knit this yarn into clothing.
Cliff House Alpacas 
That is a lovely fleece!
I hope I can get good fleeces from my two boys, Grumpy and Bashful. Both are white, Bashful is a suri, so I’ve got high hopes.
We only have one suri, Bravado, and he’s an old man so his fleece is kind of wimpy. I love spinning suri, but it’s hard to find someone who will process the fleece for you.
Reblogged this on SpinningJulie and commented:
I love to spin alpaca fiber! My sensitive skin prickles at the average 3% wool content garment, so finding a non-abrasive natural fiber so soft and beautiful is a huge bonus. It warms in your hand and is not terribly hard to spin. I can do it and I just started spinning this summer. Have fun!