Alpaca Sweater from Valentino

This, boat-neck, alpaca sweater was knit from the fleece of my old herdsire, Valentino with a blue silk/merino blend yarn, also hand spun, thrown in for color. A lot of people think that alpaca cannot be spun up as a bulky woolen yarn. They are wrong, of course. You just need to start with a crimpy alpaca fleece and then make sure to card and spin it woolen style. In the above photo, I am wearing the sweater at my friend Jane's place, Thistledown Alpacas. Note that everyone else in the photo is wearing a jacket or coat! With my super-warn alpaca sweater on, I didn't need a jacket or coat.