Fine alpaca wool fabrics in Otavalo

Origen.

Cuando hablamos de Alpaca es necesario hacer una distinción entre la fibra natural que lleva este nombre y el animal, camélido, del cual proviene, por lo que aquí te lo explicamos.

Esta fibra ha sido considerada por años un producto de alto valor comercial debido a las propiedades que tiene para mantener la temperatura corporal a bajas temperaturas, por ello debes saber que existen dos tipos de alpaca Suri y las Huancayo.

Alpaca suri

It´s fiber is straight, long, silky and it is easy to recognize by the shine of the fiber.

Alpaca Huancayo

It is the most produced because it has a short, heavy, curly and fluffy fiber.

Alpaca is characterized by being pure because it is not mixed with other materials, which guarantees a fine finish to the fabric, whether it is clothing or accessories. The alpaca fabric is more resistant, besides it will not cause allergies because it does not contain lanolin, the finished alpaca wool products do not wear out, nor do they break because they are elastic, so their use is very long

Curious fact

Alpacas are animals that should be raised in areas with a good altitude ranging from 3,500 meters above sea level to 4,500 meters. In these environments they withstand harsh temperatures of about -20º C very well. They live for approximately 20 to 25 years.

We present the process of fine alpaca wool fabrics originating in Otavalo Ecuador, there are few artisans who are dedicated to this activity because the process is manual, it is hard work of dedication and patience, so most prefer to spin or weave

Material selection

The first step is the selection of the raw material, so the alpaca fiber begins to be classified either by quality or by color and, little by little, the impurities are separated.

Yarn

For this process, the manual or pedal spinning wheel is used where the wool begins to be spun. It is recommended that each color be spun separately.

Distorted

With the help of a wooden spinning wheel, two threads of the same color are joined and at the same time they are also twisted, all this occurs so that the thread is stronger.

Entangled

After having twisted the thread, the distaff is removed to make skeins of approximately ½ kg.

Washed

This skein is washed with water in order to remove any grease or residue that may be present. If the desired product is going to be in a natural color then it is knitted with a circular needle. While chemical dyes are used to dye the white yarn in different colors

Tissue

this process is manual and for this circular sticks are used. Everything goes according to the design that you want to make, for example, if it is a coat, you start with the waistband, then the body, followed by the sleeves and the neck, also cautiously forming a figure if that is the case.