Alpaca Art at Addies

I've had several nice opportunities to sell my alpaca products lately, but wanted to give a bit more detail about what we're up to tomorrow, Saturday, December 11th. It's a busy time and I know that lots of you have wanted to shop with us but other chances didn't work out for you. We had considered having a small barn open house, but thought it might be more convenient if we set up on the deck at nearby Addie's Creekside Cafe in Millville from 11-2 (rain or shine, it should be dry enough and people can go inside to get warm or purchase lunch, a hot chocolate or coffee). A lot of people have been asking me what I'm bringing, prices, etc., so here's the plan!I've got several colorful felted birdhouses ready to go. Most are $22 and a few larger ones are $30 or $35. I'm getting a great response to these and have sold quite a few already (also have some pre-orders I plan to ship next week) and am making them as fast as I can to supply my own needs as well as the galleries where I sell.

I have a pretty limited supply of alpaca socks. I've only got about 10 pairs and they're a variety of women's or up to size 10 men's sizes, all are $20 each. I can order more on request and have them by the end of next week if you let me know.Alpaca felted soaps are a popular, unique gift item, and I've got several in Christmas colors and other pretty shades. They are $8, and if you'd like to order a quantity of 5 or more I can take $1 off and have them for you next week!

There will be some alpaca hats ($20-$25), scarves ($30 for commercial, $60 for handmade nuno-felted silk and alpaca), and I'm putting special pricing on our entire inventory of alpaca sweaters ($40-$100). I didn't go to Peru this fall, so I won't have the cute ornaments or some of the other items that I brought back with me last year.Handmade silk and alpaca scarf

I have some handspun, hand-dyed yarn but will also be offering some special "stash" alpaca yarn for $3-4 per skein.

Making jewelry (seen at top) has been a fun new endeavor for me this year and it's been well-received so far! Some of the jewelry incorporates felted alpaca beads but I also use swarovski crystal, sterling silver, lots of copper, roman glass, etc. Prices on jewelry ranges from $8-$20 for earrings, $30-$40 for bracelets, and $15 to $60 for necklaces.

If you plan to eat lunch at Addies, you may want to consider making a reservation at 873-0273.

So, that's the general scoop, though there are probably some things I've left out! If this goes well, I may do it again next Saturday so please do let me know if you are interested. We're open at the farm by appointment, and I can ship in time for Christmas if it's by next week (and I have time to make!!!) Thanks for all of your support and encouragement of our products, the handmade items in particular.

Art in the Barn!

I've been on a creative roll (when I can find time!), partly getting ready for my friend's upcoming event this weekend, Art in the Barn, at Alpacas at Booker's Corner in Paris, KY and partly just the holiday rush in general. You can see some of the things I've been busy making on my other blog.A friend suggested that I might attempt to make felted bird houses, so today I finally had a go at it. What a fun project! I was pretty pleased with how my first attempts turned out.
I'm learning more and more that using the correct type of fiber for the project makes a big difference. I wanted to use a fiber that would shrink considerably into a thick and water-repellent fabric, so I chose C-1 wool (a pretty generic and somewhat coarse fiber) from New England Felting Supply. I also used some softer wool roving from my friend Dianne for the inside of one of the houses, and will probably try some alpaca along with the C-1 wool next.
These are $22 each, and I hope to have some more made in other sizes by the weekend (They are about 6-7 inches tall by about 5 inches wide). I am experimenting with the best way to hang them, and will probably felt a hanging cord onto the next ones. If you are interested in purchase, drop me a line and we can arrange payment by PayPal or credit card.

On another note, I've had people asking about our cria Forrest Gump (who couldn't stand at birth and walked with a big limp for a while). He's doing GREAT and I plan to put a video up of him later in the week.... and by the way we are thinking of naming his buddy Bubba!

Making Stuff!

Alpaca fiber beads, ancient Roman carved glass, copper

Working with alpaca fiber is my passion (okay, one of quite a few!) and I've been really busy making things to sell at upcoming events such as the Midway Fall Festival (September 18th and 19th) and Agritourism Day at Life Adventure Center (September 25th). We'll have a booth set up with animals and alpaca products at both of these events, and hope to see you there!Set of felted pillows

Here are some recent projects, I'm especially enjoying making felted pillows and jewelry, as well as dyeing roving for use in felted shawls and scarves!

Fiber Friday

Three class participants with nearly-finished hats

Last week I got a good fiber fix, with this commission felting project completed and two hat felting classes!Despite one particular fleece giving us fits (it was slow to felt, and Kay, above, was ready to turn her hat into a place mat at one point!), everyone had great success with their hats, once again. Everyone stopped to see our newborn cria on their way out. Yes, another boy, but a lovely one at that.
I look forward to scheduling more classes in late summer, or if two or more people want to get together and request a class before then, I'm happy to do it! In the meantime, trail riding is beckoning and I'm having trouble finding more studio time. Here are a few nearly-finished projects that I made during classes....

Felted Soaps- What the Heck?

One of the more popular items that I make and sell are "felted soaps". Some people look at me REALLY strangely when I say that, trying to picture a soap made of felt or felt made of soap. Actually, it's more like a combination of the two!I start with hand-dyed alpaca roving or batting(fiber which has been "carded"), wrap it around a soap, then wet it and start rubbing to make it felt permanently around the soap.
The end result is a pretty little soap which is kind of like having a washcloth or loofah AND soap all in one. When you wet it in the shower or tub, soap suds come through the felt and you can scrub with it!
I sell these at Damselfly Gallery in Midway, Truly Bluegrass in Versailles, and here on the farm. They make a great gift, and come wrapped with handspun or fabric scaps tied around them and a tag which explains what it is! I'll have plenty available for our Shearing Day which is this Saturday, April 10th, from 10 to 4.

More felting and learning

We had another great class here on Sunday, with several coming from near and far to learn the basics of felting.Christina brought her college daughter and her roommate, and they were very enthusiastic learners. I think it was a neat way for them to spend time together on spring break!
We did a little bit of wet felting...And needle felting.....It's been fun to watch people discover felting for the first time, especially if they are unable to do other fiber arts due to arthritis or simply not having success with needle crafts.
I am truly enjoying being back in teaching mode, especially when it's something I am so passionate about, felting! The next class will be held on Sunday, April 25th from 1-5. It's a Hat Felting Class- the cost is $70 and includes all materials, snack, and a reusable hat form that you get to keep! If you're interested, contact me at alpacalindy@gmail.com as the class is already filling up.

Happy Halloween!

As is typical with our kids (most kids?), ideas for Halloween costumes come at the very last minute. This morning found me fashioning a beard for Robert's costume for school. He's dressed as a "famous" hobo that used to frequent our small town, I'm told.

The beard is not of alpaca, but some BFL (Blue-faced Leiceister sheep's wool) that I got from my friend, Dianne. It is beautiful fiber and I still plan to do "something" with it... this is the something for now!

I have spent the last while scouring my photo files for a picture of the time that Robert had to dress up as a President- he was George Washington and we made a wig together out of white alpaca rovings, it was a hoot!

I needle-felted these pumpkins out of hand-dyed alpaca fiber.

Everyone have a Happy Halloween, and remember to use what you have on hand!

Felting Class Fun

Things have been going much more smoothly on the farm lately, with the recent felting class being one of the highlights. I didn't get a whole lot of pictures since I was teaching, but here are a few.
The best part was the fun and energetic attendees, which included an artist, an alpaca breeder wanna-be, and some current alpaca breeders with varied backgrounds in working with fiber. Planning the timing for a 4-hour class which included several demos and hands-on was a bit tricky the first time, especially considering what a chatty group we had! All in all, everything worked out fine and I think everyone had a good time. Each participant took home a few small finished projects as well as some door prizes.
One of the husbands had to try it, too, when he came to pick up his wife and I think he enjoyed the needle felting immensely!

You can be sure that I'll be scheduling more classes in the near future- let me know what you'd like to see the most! This was a beginner's overview class (of which I'll offer another) but future topics will include Felting a Hat, Nuno-felting, and a specialized needle felting course.
Thank you very to each person who attended, and I hope to see you at future classes!

Always Learning

Isn't that what life is all about? Sometimes we don't learn things in time (that's called The School of Hard Knocks), but we tuck away those tidbits to apply in future situations.... That's all I can glean from the rather bad experience we went through with Maisy. She's the alpaca dam that we thought was perhaps going to have twins.... I'll write in more detail about it soon, but I'll just say here that we had almost the worst possible outcome. Maisy died and there were no twins, but we do have a male bottle-baby. Again, more details in time because I do have some helpful things to share about prolapsed uterus, bottle-feeding, and working with your vet. It's still a bit raw for me to talk about.

Okay, on a happier note!!!! One of my goals for the year has been to do more felting and subsequently more teaching here. As many of you know, I have lots of fiber interests- knitting, spinning, dyeing, and best of all for me, FELTING! I'd love to have you join me for this upcoming class on Sunday, October 18th! (If anyone can explain to me how I can insert a flyer such as this below so that it can be downloaded and printed, please let me know!) If you'd like for me to send this to you as an attachment, please just email me. Hope to see you there!

On a roll with felting!

Last week on my other blog I shared some recent felting projects and talked about having a creative rush without a lot of time to follow my urges. Well, it seems that positive intentions have resulted in both additional time AND continued inspiration!
I've been doing even more felting, and had a particularly great time making this hat! It is made from hand-dyed alpaca fiber, with the embellishments part merino and part hand-dyed and handspun alpaca.

Not a very patient person am I, but I am FINALLY learning to put unfinished projects aside occasionally when I get "stuck." I needled in the flowers last night, but didn't know what else to do the hat and it needed something. This morning I immediately had the idea for the lady bug and spiral, as well as the dotted band and handspun line on the brim.

After needle felting, I got the entire hat wet again with hot soapy water and wet-felted it again very gently with a palm sander (be sure to read up on safety precautions if you try this). I can't decide whether or not to stitch the edges like on the last one, but that can wait.

Manic felting

I'm not always the most motivated or self-disciplined person in the world (not news to those who know me!), and I've been needing to make some felted soaps for the Truly Bluegrass shop for some time. Dropping off fiber for processing at Flaggy Meadow last week got me excited about working with my fiber again and boy did I get a lot done on Sunday!

I made felted soaps galore. Cat balls with a bell in the middle.

Mirian and I made a prototype for a Cat Mat. Sushi loved it but Munchie felt that it would be great for dogs, too. I was excited about a new, original idea I had... felted coasters using space-dyed rovings. They look nice with a bit of zigzag stitching around the edges. (Those newly-acquired sewing skills are coming in handy).

I also figured out how to make Bird Nesting Balls (to hang in the trees for the birds to take tufts of fiber for their nests!) These and other items will be available soon at Truly Bluegrass,here at the farm, and at my Etsy store. I hope I can keep this groove going for a while!