Llama Rug Project

Several years ago I received an email from a couple living in a nearby town that had a few Llamas as pets. They were not sure, not being familiar with fibre arts, what to do with the fibre after shearing until they heard from a mutual friend that they knew someone who spun and wove natural fibres. We bartered, as is the custom among country folk, exchanging my services for what fibre that would not be needed for the project. At that time, still a bit of a novice I could not be sure of the time and energy that would be needed for a project like this, nor was I certain of the condition the fibre would be in. Still I accepted, happily, because I felt the experience would compensate for the unknown.

Instead of separating the colors I spun them as I combed resulting in a very nice variegated yarn. I used cotton rug yarn for the warp to add strength and offer a different texture for the borders and fringe.

Woven on a 24” 4 harness loom I was pleased with the results. The photograph does not do the colors justice but you can get an idea of the pattern.

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It has been some time since I have directed any energy to this forum but until just recently I had decided to concentrate on all things Lent. Then after Pascha comes the glorious first days of gardening. Now that there are only a few minor touches needed ornamentally, and until dh gets the ground tilled for the veggies, I have some time for fibre again.

I managed to finish a nice length of lace trim and feel that I am getting the hang of knitting lace. At least I am doing less tinking and more knitting. It took a little longer than I had expected but anything worth doing is worth doing right and you get what you put into it. Lacework, in my opinion, can't be rushed.

I started out with a pattern I thought would be good for a headcovering but I think I may have chosen one that may be a little too ambitious. It's never good to allow one's ego free reign. Tearing it out and rethinking things a bit, I have chosen a more appropriate pattern for my skill level.

Now let's see how well things progress.