THE FIBER FACTORY
EAST VALLEY ALPACAS, LLC
493 Clark Rd. Ext.
Alfred Station, NY 14803
607-382-7811
www.east-valley-alpacas.com
Fine alpaca fiber from farm to fashion
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The Fiber Factory, opened in 2006, utilizes a complete Belfast Mini Mill system to provide custom processing of alpaca and other natural fibers into roving, batts, yarn and felt. The steps in this process include:
Washing All incoming fleece is washed at The Fiber Factory. Washing the fleece is vitally important and is the only way to insure consistent quality in the final product. The fleece is then air dried on drying racks.
Picking, or opening the fiber All fiber goes through the picker which opens the individual locks of fiber, and is blown into the adjacent room. Blending with other fibers often begins at this stage.
Conditioning Since any oils are removed from the fleece during the washing process, specific conditioning agents are placed back onto the fleece to reduce static and improve its ability to be spun into yarn. The amount of conditioner is calculated based on the fleece weight after drying.
Fiber Separating or Dehairing Coarse guard hairs are separated from the fleece in the fiber separater (dehairer) along with vegetable matter and other undesirable material. Fiber separating is included according to the customer's preference, or as needed. Coarse fibers for rugs and insoles are not dehaired due to excessive loss.
Carding The carder aligns individual strands of fiber, allowing the production of roving or batts. Rovings can be further processed into yarn, wound into center pull bumps of roving, or bagged as loose roving. Batts can be used in this form, or further processed into felt.
Drawframe Rovings pass through the drawframe two or more times to blend and lengthen. Each successive pass through the drawframe creates a more uniform roving.
Spinning and Plying To be spun, fiber must be between 2" and 5", due to the physical limitations of the spinner. Single strands of spun fiber are created on the spinner. These singles can be of varying thickness, to form fingering weight, sport weight, worsted weight or bulky yarn. The singles from the spinner are then plied together to form 2, 3 or 4 ply yarn.
Finishing The twist is set in yarn through steaming or washing, and yarn is either left on cones or measured out in skeins. Standard skeins are 200 yards, but may be of any length based on the customer's preference. All skeins are rewashed and air dried as the final step before yarn is returned to the customer.
Felt making 4' x 5' (approximate) needle felted sheets
CUSTOM FIBER PROCESSING PRICES (effective 10/1/2011)
Roving or batts - $16.00 per pound, based on incoming weight; includes washing, picking and conditioning, one or two passes through the fiber separator / dehairer as appropriate, and carding. 2 or more color roving (striped, multicolor, etc) - $18/lb. Colors must be bagged separately, and a minimum of 1 lb. per color is required.
Yarn processing includes washing, picking and conditioning, dehairing as appropriate, carding, 2-3 passes through the drawframe, spinning, plying into 2, 3 or 4 ply yarn, and finishing. All yarn is charged based on incoming weight.
2 ply sport weight, 2 or 3 ply worsted or heavier yarn - $30/pound for skeins, $28/pound for yarn left on cones.
2 ply, 2 color sport weight yarn - $33/pound.
3 ply sport weight yarn, 3 ply, 3 color yarn - $35/pound.
Fingering weight yarn - $40 per pound.
Needle felt - $35 per pound, based on incoming weight for unstructured, medium weight 4' x 5' sheets (approximate dimensions). Includes washing, picking and conditioning, dehairing, carding and needle felting. Additional size and weight options for needle felt are listed on the needle felting page.
Small batch charges - additional $10 for each lot of roving under 2 lb, and additional $15 for each batch of yarn under 3 lb.
No deposit is required when your fleece arrives at East Valley Alpacas / The Fiber Factory. When your fiber gets close to the top of the waiting list, you will be contacted with an estimate for your order, and a deposit of at least 25% of the estimate will be requested. Fiber will not be washed until the down payment is received.
Prices subject to change without notice.
CLEANLINESS OF INCOMING FLEECE - Skirting fleece is NOT included in the price of processing. The cleaner incoming fleece is, the better your product will be. All twigs, burrs, seed heads, manure, and any other visible debris should be removed. If you leave debris in your fleece, you will have debris in your yarn when returned. Felted areas should also be removed, since these will not process. If fleece is unskirted or poorly skirted, The Fiber Factory will charge $15 per pound to properly skirt the fleece.
TIMELY PAYMENT AND PICKUP - Unfortunately, it has become necessary to institute a policy regarding payment. Payment is expected upon completion of work, and orders will not be shipped until paid in full, unless other arrangements have been made in advance. Any order not paid for within 60 days will become the property of East Valley Alpacas, and will be sold to help offset the cost of processing.
If you intend to ship fleece to The Fiber Factory, please complete the form below, so I can notify you when it arrives. Please label each bag, and include processing instructions. If you have any questions, please call prior to shipping your fleece. Thank you.
Wendy Dailey, Owner
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