While the Autumn leaves still dance around our pastures, there is a definite chill is in the air and tell-tale signs that the holidays are just around the corner. We have enjoyed an unusually long, mild fall this year. The alpacas enjoyed long naps in the sun and still manage to find something to nibble in the pasture. But weather predictions are for a brutally cold winter and our winter preparations are in place. Our barns have been buttoned down and bales of straw are ready to be stuffed in drafty corners and strewn on the hard ground floor. The chicken coop has been winterized with a warm lamp, plastic covering their windows and door and a heated waterer. Did I mention that we stuffed the coop walls with unusable alpaca fiber for warmth? How lucky are those chickens?!
I visited family in California over Thanksgiving; a nice diversion to life on the farm, not to mention it’s a completely different existence than we know in Indiana. A trip to a nearby shopping center with my parents put a smile on my face as we passed racks of heavy coats, hats and scarves! J The prices of the scarves were not much less (and in fact some were more!) than our natural Alpaca scarves. I can’t help myself, I stop to read the fabric content as we pass by – I saw quite a bit of acrylic, polyester, viscose and one scarf even contained 2% rubber on its label! That was the first time I’ve ever see “rubber” listed in clothing contents!
I enjoy perusing L.L. Bean, Talbot, J. Jill and other various winter catalogs to get ideas for this year’s fashion style, the latest in fabrics, and how they justify their pricing on so many variations of man-made fabrics. Time after time I come away feeling pleased about our product offering. Luxuriously soft, sumptuous fabrics in pure, natural colors in fashionable styles, unsurpassed warmth, and long-lasting quality.
Our local mini-mill decided to close to the public this year so we shopped around for another option. We chose a small mill in Kentucky and received our first 5 batches of yarn back last week. It’s very pretty and I’m excited to offer it for sale in our farm shop. We have a few batches still coming and quite a bit more that still needs to be processed. A shortage of time keeps us from catching up and undoubtedly we will have another year’s clip before we get through all we have on hand (not such a bad problem to have!). Take a peek at our Preferred Herd line of yarn. It’s the ultimate in comfort and warmth!
Speaking of processing, we will have a “micro-mini-mill” at the farm. Plans are in the works for a fiber processing room complete with washer, fiber tumbler, a skirting area, carder, spinning wheel and project work area. I’m so excited to finally have a place to dabble with various blends of fibers, textured yarns, and fun and artsy rovings. Watch for more details and photos this winter!
Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving.
Warmly, Liz
After 8 winters on the farm, last winter I broke down and bought a heavy-duty Carhartt jacket. I’ve held off buying one because they are so darn heavy but Lee kept telling me they are worth their weight in gold! He was right, the thing IS warm. For the past 8 years I have been wearing flannel lined jeans along with my (scratchy) wool long-johns but still, my upper legs and knees would be so cold and achy by the time I was done with chores.
