Scouring Alpaca Fiber

Paul left for Ohio today and is coming home tomorrow night, and I'll be in the field tomorrow until who knows when. So tonight was definitely the night for scouring the fiber and ridding it of all that dirt.


I followed Shirley's instructions as I remembered them (which could be worrying as my memory is not always that great).

1. Spread the fiber on an old blanket and sorted through, pulling out some of the larger vegetable matter such as sticks and straw.
2. Divided the pile in half and loaded one half into a mesh bag.

3. Filled the washer machine halfway with hot water and Orvus Paste or similar (I used Animal Legend Paste Detergent from a livestock supply store).

4. Carefully submerged the mesh bag in the water, being careful not to agitate it to prevent felting.

5. Left the washer lid up so that the cycle did not continue. Let the fiber soak without agitation. I left it in for about an hour or so, but I don't know if we really need to leave it in that long.

6. Advanced the cycle to the LAST spin cycle and let the washer do it's thing: drain and spin-dry the fiber.

7. Removed fiber and let it dry on a rack.

8. Repeated Steps 1-7 with second half.

It will probably take a few days to dry so now it's time to just be patient!