The alpaca wool production process begins with the shearing of an alpaca. In most cases, farmers own and take care of a number of alpacas, and they could stagger the shearing process so that every animal is ready to be shorn at a distinct time, or they could shear their animals all at once.
An alpaca is ready for shearing when its hair has reached a sure size, however there’s some disagreement among alpaca breeders as to when the optimum length is reached. In addition, the ideal shearing time varies between Huacaya and Suri alpacas.
The wool from an alpaca is usually shorn with scissors, and this process is done by hand to avoid harming the animal. It often takes 2-3 individuals to shear an alpaca since these animals are highly resistant to the process. In most cases, the entire coat of the animal comes off in one massive mat; alpaca breeders shear their animals close to the skin, they usually often shear almost your entire body.
When alpaca wool is spun into yarn using the indigenous strategies which can be nonetheless frequent in Peru and other international locations, a variant of a drop spindle called a “pushka” is commonly used. This device looks similar to a spinning top, and it uses gravity to mix multiple carded wool fibers into a single thicker fiber.
In different applications, however, more advanced spinning technologies could also be used. As an example, the treadle wheel is commonly used to spin this cloth, and in some cases, carded alpaca wool could even be spun in factory settings. The production of this fabric in Peru, nonetheless, is almost entirely performed by hand by indigenous people.
As soon as it is fashioned into yarn, the wool is washed to remove impurities. The indigenous individuals of Peru use a variety of wild plants to make non-toxic and easy washing substances, and unlike the process used with sheep wool, this type of wool is washed after it is spun.
In other countries or in more industrial situations, different non-toxic washing agents could also be used to clean wool earlier than it is woven or knitted. As soon as the wool is washed and air-dried, it is ready to be fashioned into a completed textile product.
Like different types of wool, alpaca wool is commonly utilized in applications in which heat retention is desired. As an example, this type of wool is commonly used to make sweaters, and it can be a favorite material for mittens, gloves, and mats.
In addition, this type of wool is used in many traditional wool applications akin to socks, shirts, and pants. However, the type of wool produced by alpacas may be made into a very fine yarn, which signifies that it can be used in quite a lot of applications that are not possible when utilizing sheep wool.