About the Materials: Baby Alpaca Blends

About the Materials: Baby Alpaca Blends

The Lanam Shop is truly fortunate to have a dedicated and informed customer base. Over time, customers have asked questions, shared knowledge and experiences, and helped shape our seasonal collections with their feedback. We have found that the more we can share with our customers about the exceptional materials, diligent crafting process, and pertinent characteristics of all our garments, a natural distinction between our products and others emerges. Moreover, we wish to share this knowledge with those merely interested in the materials and time-honored techniques used to bring to life our garments. We want to dedicate some time to our pure Baby Alpaca products.

What are Baby Alpaca Blends?

Baby Alpaca is an inherently delicate material. We offer a beautiful collection of special alpaca blends including alpaca and silk, alpaca and Merino Wool, and Alpaca blended with some man-made materials. We typically use blended Baby Alpaca when we are crafting our classic line of outerwear, or garments that are made from woven cloth, rather than knitting with yarn. Ultimately, this is a function of durability and heat retention. While on its own, Baby Alpaca has remarkable insulation properties, the material is simply too delicate to be woven into cloth on its own. In order to weave pure Baby Alpaca, thick yarns need to be used, creating a high grams-per-square-meter rating. Not only would the garment be heavy, it would also be incredibly warm, almost unable to breath. Certain types of alpaca fiber, like Suri Alpaca and Haucaya, produce thicker prime fleece that can be easily made into fine yarn. Lastly, Baby Alpaca fiber is just too short to be made into cloth on its own. This lack of sufficient length often results in the yarn getting damaged or ripped apart while on the looms. No matter how tightly wound the fiber is, there simply is not enough “there” there to grab onto.

Where are Baby Alpaca Blends from?

We source all of our beautiful raw alpaca fibers from spittoons (a herd of alpacas) living in the vast mountain plateaus of the Peruvian section of the Andes Mountain Range. Different villages and ranches raise different types of alpacas; the type they raise is often dependent on tradition, suitability of the surroundings, and the type of finished products the local culture specializes in. Traditional “ranching” results in the highest-quality finished product. For our Peruvian alpaca suppliers, their animals are their way of life and it shows in the level of care they provide to their spittoons. While the term “ranchers” is often used to describe the people that engage in alpaca “farming”, neither really accurately captures the freedom and care the alpacas truly have. Some families (or entire villages) do have a centralized barn where alpacas live and rest, while others let their alpacas live completely free and merely offer food and care in the animals’ natural habitat, as needed. Alpacas can be very friendly, unlike their cousin the llama; they are happy to interact with humans, especially ones they develop life-long bonds with. Alpacas, like their cousin the vicuña, need room to roam, play, and live. The spittoon is given ample time to do just that. The barn doors are opened early in the morning and the animals are given the day to roam, until they are called back at night.

How do Baby Alpaca Blends differ from “similar” materials?

The main difference from pure and blended alpaca is the long-term durability of the garment. Pure Baby Alpaca knitwear has an unavoidable refractory period before it can be worn again. Simply put, the material needs to rest. This is partly because of the delicate nature of the very fine Baby Alpaca fibers. Radiant body heat warms the fibers, causing them to change shape, molding to the shape of the wearer’s body. By letting the garment rest the fibers can “reset”.

By blending Baby Alpaca with a stronger, equally warm material (Merino Wool) the resulting sweater is stronger, warmer, and will better retain its original shape. Blending Baby Alpaca with silk offers considerable durability and an unmatched sheen. Silk brings a wonderful, rich look to the finished piece and is especially prevalent in our women’s collection. We also blend Baby Alpaca fibers with man-made fibers. While not common in our knitwear collection, this blend helps us create our line of water-resistant Baby Alpaca outerwear.

What is the refining process for Baby Alpaca Blends?

Refined like any ordinary wool, Baby Alpaca blends need to be sorted, graded, carded, dyed, and spun. Alpaca fiber can be cut, sheared in pelts, or brushed (shearing in pelts is only common with matted species of alpacas and the alpaca is neither hurt, nor killed in the process). The resulting raw hair needs to be sorted by region it was clipped from (prime fleece vs. regular fleece), color, length, and hair types. From here, it can be carded. Depending on the material the alpaca fiber is being blended with, other natural fibers can be blended directly with the alpaca fibers being processed, or can be added later. The carded alpaca fiber can either be dyed and then sup, or sup and then dyed. Traditions usually dictate which occurs first. The material the alpaca is being blended with can be introduced when the fiber is being spun. In this event, the two finished fiber strands are introduced and spun into one fiber.

What styles are available in Baby Alpaca Blends?

We offer a wide selection of styles for men and women that are crafted using premium Baby Alpaca blends. In fact some of our most popular men’s and women’s styles are Baby Alpaca blends.

Men’s

1. Sweatshirt, crafted with 80% Baby Alpaca and 20% Merino Wool. Best-seller for men!
2. V-neck, crafted with 80% Baby Alpaca and 20% Merino Wool.
3. Classic Car Coat, crafted with 67% Baby Alpaca and 33% wool.
4. Weekend Bag, crafted with 60% Alpaca and 40% wool

Women’s

1. Round Neck, crafted with 54% Baby Alpaca, 24% Silk, and 22% Moh Kid
2. Fleece-Finish Topcoat, crafted with 76% Baby Alpaca Suri and 24% Wool

What are the advantages of wearing Baby Alpaca Blends?

By blending the Baby Alpaca fiber with a stronger, or warmer material the properties of the finished garment can be greatly enhanced. Often decreasing the delicate nature of Baby Alpaca, the blends are easier to care for, more comfortable to wear, and are less susceptible to damage. By blending with synthetic materials, we are able to offer a warm, soft, and water-resistant collection of outerwear for both men and women.

How are The Lanam Shop’s Baby Alpaca Blends unique?

Simply put, our blends are truly sumptuous. We work relentlessly to create functional and beautiful blends that are able to endure the elements, consistent use, and cleaning. Moreover, our blends are unique to s specific form and function. We vary the materials used and profile of the fabric to ensure the end result is beautifully suited both to the design of the piece and its anticipated use. We are able to offer dozens of colors in our classic 80% Baby Alpaca & 20% Merino Wool Men’s sweaters. 

Index of Terms:

Carding: a mechanical process that detangles wool, allowing it to be arranged in a single direction. This is helpful when the wool is spun.

Prime Fleece: fiber collected from the neck, chest, and the under belly of an Alpaca.