Fiber Skirting, Sorting and Processing At Snowshoe Farm, we try to make use of as much of the fiber produced by our alpacas as possible. We use the highest quality fleeces for our alpaca and alpaca-blend yarns. But there is a lot of fiber that does not meet our standards … Read More
We’re working with alpaca fiber in one form or another all year ’round. Shearing season is over, so it’s time to skirt and grade our fleeces for processing. The best fiber will go to the mill to be carded into roving or spun into yarn. Lower grades will become rug … Read More
Snowshoe Farm is offering free shipping on all products from our online yarn shop through December 31. Use coupon code SHIPFREE. VermontAlpacaYarn.com lists alpaca yarn, roving and felting fiber as well as dyes, needles & hooks and free patterns. All alpaca fiber used in our products is grown on our Vermont farm. We … Read More
Snowshoe Farm has LOTS of new alpaca yarn back from the mill and more yarn and roving on the way. Dyeing will start next week and we will be updating our online alpaca yarn store with new colors very soon. If you are not on our e-newsletter list, sign up … Read More
Done! This is our last victim…er, alpaca…of the day and we are finished shearing our herd. Snowshoe Allegro, co-owned with Spirit Wind Farm, has the most lustrous fleece I’ve ever seen. I wish I had been able to get a better photo. I’ll give it another try when I skirt … Read More
It’s difficult to believe that autumn begins in a couple days! The summer has flown by and the weather in recent weeks has been so warm that it has not prompted thoughts of fall. This morning, however, we woke to a temp of 34, a brisk reminder that the season … Read More
Now that we’ve finished our spring shearing, we’re faced with piles of fleeces waiting for the next step. This is just a portion of the fiber that will be sorted, skirted and sent off to various destinations: fleece shows, yarn mill, felting fiber, etc. The first thing we’ll do is … Read More
Fall is here and that means a very busy time on the farm! During the next month, most weekends bring either a fiber festival or an alpaca show. Weekdays are filled with getting ready for the next weekend’s event. That means dyeing yarn, skirting fleeces, chasing down all the odds … Read More
Done! Shearing is THE big spring chore at Snowshoe Farm and it feels so good to have finished. We shear early – usually the end of April – and, being spring in the NEK, the weather rarely cooperates. Generally, the alpacas have to endure a period of chilly temps before … Read More
Adding value to the fiber produced by our alpacas is an important part of our farm business. But finding time to sort through all the fiber during the busy spring through fall months is difficult. This year, our project (one of many!) has been to weatherize my fiber room in … Read More