Frosty Acres Alpacas

12/24/2024

12/19/2024

Hello

11/23/2024

Waiting for supper

11/03/2024

Thank you to everyone who stopped to visit me yesterday , it was great to see you all. Thanks for supporting my small business!

11/01/2024

I’ll be tomorrow with my friends from . Come see us for some amazing yarn and fiber.

10/31/2024

The last two colors for this Saturday

10/26/2024

Just mixed up the last batch of dye for 2024

10/25/2024

Alpacatober Day 7: Huacaya and Suri
There are 2 kinds of alpacas. Huacaya(pronounced:”wah-KI-ya”) and Suri(pronounced “SOO-ree”)
Picture 1: some of my Huacaya alpacas
Picture 2: Suri alpaca from

The Suri has coiled locks of fiber that hang downward, the Huacaya has crimpy fiber, which act like small springs, and grow perpendicularly to the body giving Huacayas their rounded, fluffy appearance.

Huacaya fiber shares more similarities with sheep wool than Suri, as Huacaya fleece is soft, fluffy, and crimpy. This natural crimp provides greater elasticity in Huacaya yarn, making it a good choice for knits. The Huacaya’s scale structure allows it to accept dyes more readily. Average annual staple length is 3-5 inches.

Suri fiber, like Huacaya, can be very fine and silky, but has no crimp (or rather, should not) and thus Suri is best suited for woven goods. Its tight scale structure makes Suri difficult to dye and Suri fiber is more difficult to work with, as it is relatively heavy when compared to similar animal fibers. Average annual staple length is 4 to 6 inches.

10/24/2024

I’ve been busy dyeing yarn for on November 2nd. This yarn is called Frosty Wind Yarn and is made with Leicester wool from sheep, LL and my alpaca, Hamilton. It’s 70% Leicester Wool and 30% alpaca.

10/24/2024

Alpacatober Day 6: Shearing
Shearing is done once a year in the spring. I hire a shearer who is very well trained. At the same time they get their teeth and nails trimmed. Some people have an issue about how they are restrained, this is done for their safety. If they were to jump while being sheared they could be seriously injured. Shearing takes about 10 minutes per animal and they are much more comfortable after it is done. They’d be pretty uncomfortable wearing their winter coat all summer. Another fun part of shearing, you find out a crias true color. Toby looked quite different after his first haircut.

10/23/2024

We love days like this!

10/23/2024

Alpacatober Day 5: Alpaca 💩 (this actually supposed to be yesterday’s post, oops!)

Alpaca manure is considered a rich soil conditioner. Alpaca fertilizer improves the soil quality and its ability to retain water. It is also good for plants, providing a fair amount of nitrogen and potassium and about average levels of phosphorus. (I had to google this)

10/22/2024

Falling leaves and alpacas 🍁🍂🦙