Cliff House Alpacas

“A flock of flamingos…”

Posted on July 1, 2013 by cliffhousemom

Aunt Geri here – trust me, I am a long way from Florida and this is NOT a common color in Wyoming! I have made a bunch of these peachy colored baby clothes. We all want to snuggle babies up in the softest clothing – and these fit the bill! Alpaca fiber is growing in popularity partially due to it’s naturally hypoallergenic properties – which makes it perfect for babies.

I am trying to use all of this yarn that I have in my stash. It is a soft, wonderful single-ply alpaca that has been discontinued. We have baby to toddler hats and baby booties. The coral colored hat has a “fun fur” crown, similar to the Adelaide penguins from “Happy Feet.” More to come in orange and lavender.

Posted in fiber art | Tagged hats, knitting | Leave a comment

A little Give and Take

Posted on June 28, 2013 by cliffhousemom

About this time last year, Aunt Geri, Uncle Jerry and I helped a family of Western Kingbirds, also known as flycatchers, by improving their nest design. A baby fell out of the hastily built nest on the fluorescent light fixture above the hay stall, and we duct taped a plastic food storage container next to the way too small nest.

With the baby’s life in jeopardy, Kirstin’s internet research showed Kingbirds will accept help from humans. They did accept what we had to give, and the baby became a healthy bug eater just like its parents. Visitors have asked us why we don’t have bugs in our barn, and I tell them our barn has birds who eat bugs.

This year soon after shearing, the Kingbirds moved back in again. They improved on our design by adding a lovely north wall made of alpaca fiber. I was overjoyed to see the five babies climbing in and out of the plastic storage container. The family has incorporated it into their grand design; making their home this year a spacious duplex.

Posted in animals | Tagged ranch life | 2 Comments

“From Dusk to Dawn”

Posted on June 26, 2013 by cliffhousemom

Aunt Geri here. These are just the most fun little scarves! They form a bow by slipping one end of the petals through a keyhole slot on the other end. Customers love them for family or friends that are always “chilly” or those who don’t want a scarf with long tails to bother with. We think of them as fabric jewelry too.

All of the yarns used are hand-dyed with colors ranging from dusk in the Blue Ridge Mountains, winter skies in North Dakota; to dawn in the canyons surrounding Sedona, Arizona. The Dusk yarn is 100% alpaca created in the Atacama region of Chili by a mother/daughter company that supports sustainable jobs for local artisans. Dakota is hand-dyed by a local Castle Rock alpaca ranch and is also 100% alpaca. The Dawn yarn is a dreamy combo of Royal Baby grade alpaca and silk. Just pick your pleasure!

Posted in Fashion, fiber art | Tagged alpaca fiber, knitting, Yarn Jewelry | 1 Comment

A Beary interesting moment

Posted on June 24, 2013 by cliffhousemom

Sundays at Cliff House Ranch are pretty quiet. We get out of bed later, walk to get the newspaper slower, and get through our routine chores with a little less energy. Sundays are a day of rest. Sounds pretty boring, right?

Yesterday was different! Gordon had a close encounter with our neighborhood brown bear, who was obviously on his way south. Our ranch has a draw, which serves as a game trail for deer, elk, coyotes, bobcats and bears. This wildlife crossing is a source of constant joy for us; mother nature is generous. So… the draw is near the manure pile, and Gordon was spreading manure yesterday. Need I say more?

While I was searching for the threat Marcello was shrieking about; Gordon was frozen in his tracks. After I got the alpacas securely in the paddock, I looked east and saw a good sized brown bear coming out of the north side of the draw. Bears are beautiful creatures, their powerful bodies are absolutely awe inspiring. Although his hands were shaking, Gordon got some good photos with his cell phone .We are truly grateful for our guest’s brief visit, but he apparently did not have the time to stay.

Posted in animals | Tagged ranch life, wildlife | 1 Comment

My favorite summer activity: crocheting blankets

Posted on June 21, 2013 by cliffhousealpacas

It’s almost 90 out! I don’t have air conditioning! Let’s make us some blankets! I (Kirstin) am now working on my second blanket of the summer. This one is already coming out better than the last. I’m using the same yarn, but the pattern seems to work with it better. The other pattern was worked in just the back loops of the stitches, instead of both the front and back loops of each stitch. I think that made it feel less sturdy.

One strip down and 7 to go! Unfortunately, each strip is added to the first, instead of being sewn together at the end. Normally, I’m all for 14 fewer ends to weave in, but this time of year I prefer not to have the entire blanket on my lap as I work on it. But I have really enjoyed sitting on my front porch in the evenings as I crochet.

Posted in fiber art | Tagged alpaca yarn, blanket, crochet, crocheted blanket | 5 Comments

“One stitch, two stitch, red fish, blue fish”

Posted on June 19, 2013 by cliffhousemom

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa; what do fish have to do with stitch? They have absolutely nothing to do with knitting really, Dad thought it would be a great title.

“Chimayo Tweed”

Momma here, when I broke open the yarn label to Aunt Geri’s “Chimayo Tweed” I knew I was in for a treat. She spins three ply yarn that is consistently fine and incredibly clean. “Chimayo Tweed” is Marcello, marled with hand dyed silk. This yarn is fingering weight with memory to die for. Oh, it is so soft, and the color is incredibly rich.

White scarf is single stitch, brown scarf is double stitch

I chose to knit a scarf using this yarn, but I am using a double stitch because of the incredibly thin strands that make up fingering weight. I have not been disappointed with this stitch. Needless to say it uses double the amount of yarn, and takes twice as much time to knit! The best things in life are worth waiting for, trust me.

Single stitch is Kirstin’s hand spun two ply lace weight, double stitch is Aunt Geri’s hand spun three ply fingering weight

Posted in fiber art | Tagged handspun, handspun yarn, scarves | 2 Comments

“Quoth the raven “Nevermore””

Posted on June 17, 2013 by cliffhousemom

Aunt Geri here – title credits go to Edgar Allan Poe from his tribute to this beautiful ebony bird.

I am a huge fan of black – maybe because it is really all colors combined. To add more sheen to black alpaca, I marled in some black/silver silk. The yarn shimmers like the raven’s black plumes. The lustrous qualities of silk are quite apparent with only a minor proportion of silk.

Silk comes from the cocoon of the silkworm, which is unwound before the moth emerges in commercial processing. The most common silk is the cultivated variety which is exclusively fed mulberry leaves, hence the name mulberry silk. Wild “tussah” silk comes from more than a dozen silkworm varieties.

This turned out to be a great combo showing the beauty of both fibers. I will definitely marl more silk into my yarns.

Posted in fiber art | Tagged alpaca fiber, marled yarn, silk, spinning | 1 Comment

Black Forest fire burns close to home

Posted on June 14, 2013 by cliffhousemom

There are multiple wildfires burning in Colorado as I, Momma, write our blog post tonight. The Black Forest fire is the closest fire to Cliff House. The air is heavy, the shroud of smoke in the air and the acrid smell of burning pine trees fills us with a sense of unease. How close are the flames? Our senses are deceived; we are out of harms way, but there are 38,000 people evacuated from their homes now, and they have no idea when they will have any semblance of order in their lives.

Smoke plume looking south east from our front door-the fire is approx. 30 miles away

Our lives continue, there are chores to be done around the ranch, the animals need to be fed and watered, stalls need to be cleaned, but in the back of our minds are feelings of sadness for those who have lost so much. Strangely, our animals are not affected by the smoke or the smell of the fire. The strong wind makes them restless as the wind always does, but our routine has continued on and to them their lives are secure.

Posted in completely unrelated | Tagged animals, ranch life, wildfires | 2 Comments

Alpaca – “Fiber of the Gods and Poor Man’s Cashmere”

Posted on June 12, 2013 by cliffhousemom

Aunt Geri here. Fiber enthusiasts like us covet alpaca which has the softness of cashmere, luster and drape of silk, warmth and loft of goose down, and strength and durability of wool. Alpacas are gaining recognition and popularity for their luxurious natural fiber, but they still remain one of the world’s rarest fiber animals. Alpacas are a domesticated member of the camelid family. They originated on the North American plains about 10 million years ago.

Vannie Looking Regal

Two wild species, vicunas and guanacos, emerged from migrations to South America about 2 1/2 million years ago, with alpacas being “created” through selective breeding for their fine fiber. Alpaca garments were reserved for Incan royalty, and goods made from Alpaca fiber have been discovered by archeologists in graves and religious sites predating the Incan Empire in South America – talk about durable!

Vannie’s fleece, soon to be “Spun Gold”

A common question answered – alpacas are NOT killed to get their fleece. Alpacas are sheared annually, much like sheep, as much for their health (who wants to wear that warm coat all summer?!) as for their valuable fleece. Demand for alpaca continues to increase because it’s luscious to the skin, durable, (see above!) allergen free, and has a soft drape and beautiful sheen. And they’re cute to boot!

Our Tulip – Does it get any cuter than this?

Posted in animals | Tagged alpaca fiber, ranch life | 1 Comment

Mary, Mary, quite contrary…

Posted on June 10, 2013 by cliffhousealpacas

…how does your garden grow? With tons of weeds and an embarrassingly random selection of vegetables. No wait, that’s not how the rhyme goes, at least not for Mary. She has her silver bells and cockle shells (in the garden? Whatever for?). Kirstin’s garden ain’t got none of them fancy-smancy plants or…sea shells (still not sure about that one). But what I do have is alpaca gold, that most excellent by-product of the ranch: compost!

A row of broccoli and marigolds, with weeds right up to the line of compost I spread at their bases.

Last year, I sort of accused Mom and Dad of giving me weed seeds along with the compost. Well, do I feel sheepish. Turns out the weeds had nothing to do with the compost. In fact, look at these pictures. Where I put down a mound of compost around the plants, there are no weeds!

I am a tomatilla plant on an island of an alpaca gold in a sea of weeds.

I am a tomatilla plant on an island of alpaca gold in a sea of weeds.

This wonderful stuff seems to suppress weeds! It also holds the moisture in the soil better, which is particularly good because we live in a semi-arid state. And, of course, it is great fertilizer. Look at how happy these little strawberries are. When I planted them a month ago, they only had one or two sad little leaves.

This is after I spent all day weeding. I slipped on some wet bricks and fell, but only crushed my self confidence! Missed the important things, the plants.

Posted in completely unrelated | Tagged arid state, compost, gardens, nursery rhymes, vegetables | 1 Comment