Last weekend found me on the mainland, deep in the Sussex countryside at Spring Farm Alpacas, home of Vicki & Chris Agar and their herd of prize-winning alpacas.
I had been invited there to hold a workshop specifically to show a group of alpaca owners how to felt alpaca fibre. The 110 acre farm is in a wonderful location, close to the Ashdown Forest in an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Vicki has over 80 alpacas at the moment including many show champions.
When I arrived on Saturday afternoon the 'girls' were being bought back
to the farm to spend the night in the barn...
...see the wide range of fleece colours - click on the photos for more detail.
Everyone of these amazing animals are treated as individuals, with their own
identity and character. They even respond to their own names!
They are handled with such care and kindness by
Vicki and her dedicated team.
They are incredibly friendly, inquisitive and very difficult to photograph!
On Sunday morning I met with a lovely group of ten enthusiastic ladies.
Many were new to wet felting so making lattice scarves was a perfect
introduction, taking the beginners through the basic felting techniques and
getting them used to handling the fibres.
It is also a relatively quick process - laying and wetting out, then rolling,
throwing and shocking the felted fibres in the final stages.
Physically quite hard work, but easily achievable in just a few hours!
introduction, taking the beginners through the basic felting techniques and
getting them used to handling the fibres.
It is also a relatively quick process - laying and wetting out, then rolling,
throwing and shocking the felted fibres in the final stages.
Physically quite hard work, but easily achievable in just a few hours!
Here is everyone at the end of the afternoon with their felted scarves -
just in need of a final rinse to remove all the soap before drying.
Made from alpaca fibre in natural shades of grey with a black/silk blend
and pale fawn with browns.
These lattice scarves are light-weight yet warm, with a very distinctive
organic look and feel. Their characteristic twisty locks & fringes are
quite reminiscent of their original owners!
It was a really great weekend at Spring Farm Alpacas and I'd like to thank Vicki & Chris for being such generous hosts.
Everyone created a wonderful scarf - totally unique, practical & wearable - and hopefully this will inspire them to continue making felt using the fibres from their own alpacas...
For more information about the alpacas at Spring Farm follow this link
For more information about the alpacas at Spring Farm follow this link